Tenth Kingdom and More: (TKAM)
by thehopeforliffe
Summary: In a world where Sarah has not only rejected the Goblin King's advances but where Jareth finds a new love in a charming mortal girl... or is she? will Elizabeth turn out to be the one his heart truly desires? And what has happened to our lovely Champion of the Labyrinth? Elizabeth and her sister Virginia travel through a strange world finding adventure and love.
1. Chapter 1

**Tenth Kingdom and More**

 **Introduction:**

Sarah was safe at home and happy that she had escaped the nightmare of Jareth the Goblin King, with the minor exception that she now could enjoy the comfort of seeing Hoggle, Sir Diddymus, and Ludo anytime she pleased. She could care less about the man who transformed into an owl, and occasionally watched her from a tree limb outside her window. She'd seen him enough times as an owl, the two times that fateful night was enough, to know who it was and why he was there. Still, she tried to forget him, and payed no attention to his presence. Over time, his observances dwindled and she no longer had to pretend not to notice him. But Sarah was not the only one changed by the adventure through the Goblin Kingdom.

Virginia was riding her bike to work one evening, when she crashed into a dog, who turned out to not be a dog, but a prince in need of help. Tony, her father, and Elizabeth, her sister, would come along with her on this journey, though Elizabeth continually was separated from the group and always with a strange tall man with wild hair and piercing eyes.

 **Chapter 1:**

Virginia and Elizabeth never did see eye to eye. Elizabeth was the dreamer of the family, with her head perpetually in the clouds and always wishing some handsome prince would come to whisk her away to a foreign land. Her style of dress even reflected this, but as fantastical as her beliefs, she was also the tough one. She never took it for granted that all guys are nice guys. She practiced martial arts to protect herself from the harsh life of New York City. Tall, blonde, and fair, she seemed harmless, but beneath the dainty facade, she was an amazon of a woman. She was as imaginative as the characters in her favorite book.

Liz, as Virginia called her, was sitting on the window sill reading her book when Virginia left for work.

"Make sure Dad sees his dinner, please," Virginia said.

"Yeah, Yeah," Liz replied briskly, in a "hurry and go" type of tone.

" Liz! Did you hear me?"

"Yeah, 'make sure Dad gets his dinner', you said"

"Well, pfft, you're stuck in that book again."

' _That day started out like any other day'_ , she thought as she reminisced. Nothing unusual about Virginia giving her a hard time about losing yet another job, and ignoring Dad's comments about his horrible boss, that is, until the trolls showed up and they got shoved into a magic traveling mirror into another dimension.

Now here they are, sitting in a cold forest trying to find wood for fire and shelter. Following them is this "Wolf" character, who tried to eat their grandmother. Liz still didn't trust him, most people don't have a change of heart that quickly, but if he truly cared for Virginia, perhaps he would prove himself. Still, he did help their dad escape from prison, and he did rescue Ginny from the trolls. What a stupid lot those guys were. She didn't dare sleep. She didn't know what mayhem would ensue if she closed her eyes for even just a moment.

Staring at the dog, the golden retriever lying next to her father, she wondered at her father's stupidity at not wishing that everyone could understand him. Of course, he shouldn't have eaten the dragon dung bean in the first place. Then her gaze moved to Wolf. He was gazing between both Ginny and Liz. He looked to be watchful of Liz and protective of Ginny, if not a little something else that she couldn't quite place.

"What," Wolf asked, almost insulted at the long and untrusting looks he was getting.

"I just don't trust you. I don't really know what to make of you," she said.

"Oooh, I can't help it" he snapped back.

"Well, try."

There was a deep hoot of an owl and a set of glowing eyes peering off of a branch behind Wolf and Tony seemingly staring at Liz. She pondered its watchful eyes for a moment as she took in all of its splendor. It was taller and larger than any other tyto owl that she had ever seen. It was a beautiful tan, silver, and white coloring that was somewhat unusual. Its face seemed almost human, and the eyes were a gorgeous blue. However, one eye had an enlarged pupil that made it look brown. He was a mesmerizing creature. Wolf took notice of where she was looking for a moment, marveled at the bird as she did, and then returned his attentions to Virginia.

Liz wondered where the magnificent bird came from and why it seemed so intently focused on her. After some time, she was able to take her focus off the owl and she pulled out her book. It was a fairy tale story, that she now wondered, given her current location and situation, if it were as real as the other stories seem to be in this world. The book entails a fae who falls in love with a human girl who spurns him. The girl, Liz thought, was foolish and selfish to not be able to see what the fae wanted in the first place. The legends say that the faeries are cruel and ugly creatures who steal children, and for the most part, well, minus the ugly, this is true about the king in her book. Although, the fairies in her book are not kind creatures as legend says, and thus, things not being what they seem, she knew the truth in the story of the Goblin King and Sarah.

Lost in her reverie, she thought about how there was more that met the eye with Jareth, and that he may have even been trapped or cursed in this life that he lived. She also made it a point to note that Sarah _wished_ her brother away, and Jareth didn't _steal_ him at all! As she often did, she imagined herself dancing with the Goblin King and making the choices that Sarah never could. One of which being that she never would have wished Virginia away, so she certainly wouldn't have wished Toby away.

Realizing that she was not reading, but daydreaming, she put the book aside and looked to the branch once more to watch the watchful owl. He was still there, but not for long. After a few moments, he took flight deep into the forest and wasn't seen again that night. When morning came, Sarah knew that food would need to be found and a fire started up again. So, she set out into the forest in search of their supplies.

She came across a clearing as she was tracking a sow through the trees. She spotted the sow at the edge of the clearing and readied herself. She was barely close enough to throw the makeshift spear she had made from a branch when she heard voices and laughter coming from behind her. In a moment of realization, she whipped around before the bandit could land their blow.

As she fought them one by one, they began to work together to flank and outnumber her. It wasn't long before she was struck on the back of the head after being sandwiched between two strong men. Just before she went unconscious, she caught another glimpse of that beautiful owl.

"Huff puff", Wolf exclaimed!

"Liz isn't here!"

"What's wrong? What happened,"asked Virginia.

"Liz took off this morning, and she hasn't come back yet. But we mustn't go after her, because those trolls are chasin' us", Wolf explained.

"Well, we can't just leaver her," shouted Tony in despair.

"We have to trust that she'll be alright, Tone. She's a capable woman, I'm sure," Wolf said.

"Alright, but if anything happens to my sister, I'm holding you responsible," Virginia whipped at Wolf.

They took off towards the direction Acorn had gone and continued on their journey, but unwillingly. This wasn't the first time she had gotten separated, they reasoned, and she would make it back again…..wouldn't she?

Jareth watched from the tree branch he was perched on as Liz valiantly fought against the bandits, but when they took her by surprise, he immediately perked his attention closer. Silently, he flew behind them following them and trying not to be seen or heard. As they neared their enclosed camp, he flew over the gate and transformed behind a tree where no one would see him. He leaned against that tree as he watched to see what would happen next.

Slowly, Liz began to stir from her concussive sleep, and look around dazed and confused. She couldn't place where she was, but the memory of fighting the bandits began to flood her memory, giving her more of a headache than the bump on her head. She was disgusted at them. They stunk, and worse, they were perverts. Always staring at her anatomy as if pieces of meat were tied there by string. She thought to herself, _'I have to get out of here, but how? My hands and feet are bound to this … thing!'_ She was tied down by leather straps to some sort of torture table. There seemed to be a stink of dried blood on it, and she was leaning slightly backwards at an angle. The men were gathered around her and they were laughing disgustingly and staring down at her.

"Well, well, now, fella's. I think we're gonna' get to have a bit of fun, now, ain't we?" The lead bandit was more disgusting than the rest of them. There was no way she was letting that man touch any part of her. Still, he came in closer, running his knife up and down her leg in a sexual manner. She spat on his face for touching her that way.

Jareth chuckled to himself. He could see that she was spirited and strong. She wouldn't have been in this situation if she hadn't been ambushed, but still, it was the perfect opportunity. If he helped her, she would be indebted to him. He would have the power to come and go as he wished and furthermore, to have a little fun again.

"Get away from me," Liz growled out. "I'll kill you if I have to, but you better get away from me!"

"Awwww, c'mon now poppet! You ain't goin' nowhere! I'm afraid you're just gonna' hafta stay right where you are. Me an' the boys is gonna' have fun takin' turns with ya."

She didn't say anything more. Words and threats weren't getting her out of this one. If she wanted out, she would have to be patient and crafty. So, she waited for the bandit leader to lean in close to whisper in her ear, and that's when she struck. She bit his ear until he bled and he raised his knife to run her through, but just as he did…..

"I wouldn't do that if I were you", Jareth said, now suddenly standing right next to her and staring with a cocky, yet menacing smile at the bandits.

"Oh, yeah? An' what you gonna' do about it" the leader asked.

"Release her."

"I said," he repeated himself, "What you gonna' do about it?"

Jareth didn't say a word, he simply drew his sword from his side and stood there with the same smile on his face. Before the bandits could blink, he had cut the leather straps from Liz's wrists and ankles and pushed her behind him. He was toying with her, at that, because he knew she could not only defend herself, but that she would be infuriated at being protected.

She just stood there half irked and half in awe of the spectacle taking place before her. There was violence and chaos, as the bandits tried in vain to kill the fae. Swing after swing, they missed and swing after swing, he didn't. Deep in her heart, she knew who this was who deigned to rescue her from the hands of the bandits. She had seen the drawings, and she knew the story all too well. The dialogue from the book was even markedly accurate. Suddenly, as he finalized the last blow, he turned around and posed himself with one knee bent and staff in hand. Now he was standing there, same smile on his face and staring at her staring at him.

Liz couldn't gather her thoughts for a full minute. She was ashamed of herself, to be swooning over this person standing in front of her. She may be a hopeless romantic, but she normally didn't fall for a guy that hadn't proved his intentions yet. Why should a magical fae creature be any less subject to this rule? In fact, she thought, he should have to prove himself all the more, given who he was and his way of things. Still, she couldn't stop herself from thinking that he was even more beautiful and majestic standing there as a man as he was as an owl…

Jareth quite enjoyed the dumbfounded expression on her face, even if he wasn't able to make out her thoughts at the moment. She was just standing there, slack jawed, staring at him half incredulously and half as though she wanted to run to him and throw herself in his arms. It was a welcome relief to save someone who actually wanted to be saved, still, the whole event reminded him of Sarah, and his smile seemed to dissipate.

She muttered under her breath insults towards Sarah and something about not being able to thank him for saving her. Then, she gathered her wits about her, and snapped out of it. She had to get supplies and head toward Ginny and their father quickly. She looted the camp of all of the gold Wendells that she could find, took weapons and food, and began to leave. On her way out of the camp, she spotted a weapons rack with a beautiful recurve bow sitting on it, next to a quiver of arrows. She took it and the two of them fled.

Jareth offered his aid to Liz one more time. He knew that if she continued to run on foot, the bandits would eventually catch up to them, and she was no good, or fun, to him dead.

"Come with me. We don't have time," he offered her.

"Where are you taking me?" She could see that the portal opened into a forested area that had an already prepared encampment set up.

"What is this place," she asked.

"It's a camp….. far from here. If you travel on foot, they will catch up to you. Come with me and you will buy yourself some time."

Unsure of his intent, she followed him to the prepared place and sat down at the fire. For a few moments she just stared at the man, as he was leaned against a tree also staring at her. Finally, she gathered enough courage to thank him for helping her.

"What's your name?" She asked.

"You know very well who I am, Elizabeth. Just as I know you."

"I don't like to make assumptions about people. Even if I am right," she said, trying to persuade him to tell her and ease her curiosity. She didn't know how she would react if she were right and if she presumed wrong, she would be mortified.

"I'll tell you my name, when you stop doubting yourself and your instincts." He replied. "But by then, I won't need to."

Liz was confused by the discourse, but too tired to try to argue the point or persuade him to tell her the truth. She found a spot next to the fire and lied down to get some rest. She was exhausted and too much had happened for her to even dare to process it all.

Jareth was concerned about her fatigue. She had taken a nasty hit to the back of the head that had her out for a couple of hours, and now, just an hour after waking up and fleeing the bandit camp, she was already tired again. He decided to stay and watch her to make sure that she didn't suffer any negative side effects. He couldn't understand his fascination with her, neither could he understand why he chose another mortal to test in the Labyrinth, but he did know that her reactions to him inspired his playfulness. But even as he sat there pondering his purpose in her life, he couldn't shake his own words to Hoggle when he befriended Sarah….. _"Oh, come, come, come, Hogbrain! I'm surprised at you! Losing your head over a girl!"_ It echoed in his mind the entirety of the night.

Brody eventually awoke from his forced sleep and noticed the lump on his head that the bird man had given him. He looked around at all the still unconscious bandits in his crew that had been attacked and his heart filled with rage. He knew that he would have to kill that girl and her friend if he ever wanted to regain his dignity and trust with his men. That's when he noticed it. The magic bow he'd stolen from the Evil Queen when he was just a youth. It never failed to hit its mark. It was his prized possession and he had to get it back, no matter the cost. He summoned his men to awake and make preparations for a hunting journey.

Liz began to dream….

 _She was dressed in the most beautiful and flowing gown of white that glittered as though it were covered in sequins. It fell just below her shoulders and glided across her chest in a dazzling yet modest manner. She was stunning in that dress. Her beautiful blonde locks were pulled back into a French braid that was tied at the ends of her hair with a ribbon the same material as her gown. She wore the most gorgeous white shoes that made her seem even taller and stronger than she was. She spotted him across the dance floor. He was swaying with other women who were dressed extravagantly and wore their hair in fanciful styles. The music played a slow and wistful melody. It seemed to be a waltz. She made her way to the table of refreshments and took a glass of punch to drink. Her eyes never left him as she watched him move about the room. As she finished her punch, she made her way onto the dance floor. Confident that he would not even look her way until she pretended that he didn't exist, she found a young man standing alone and engaged him in the dance. Gracefully she waltzed around the dance floor happily gliding to and fro. Partner after partner she danced the night away, until finally he began to fade from her memory. At length, when the night was about spent, she felt a tap on her shoulder and herself being pulled away into another dance. His arms were strong and sturdy but vibrated with gentleness and care. It was as if she were as delicate as the crystals that he summoned and controlled. He wasn't smiling, though there was definitely something of pleasure in his eyes. No, his eyes had something else entirely held deep inside, something penetrating into the soul that made her forget that they had left the ballroom and were now dancing out on the balcony of the castle. When the music ended, he took her by the hand and walked her out to the edge of the balcony to look over the railing. Nothing was said. Nothing needed to be said. There was a mutual understanding in the air and they looked deep into the others' eyes as the night carried on behind them. Slowly he took her into his arms and held her closely. He gently caressed her face and took her chin in his forefinger and thumb. Their lips touched gingerly and for what seemed like timeless hours. The world stood still, and so did her heart._

Suddenly Liz awoke from her sleep desperate for air. That was not what she expected to dream about. She sat up in her camp site panting and looking around to see if Jareth was still there. Frantically she searched the immediate camp site to see if the sly fae was standing around with a crystal in his hand, remembering that he can see into dreams with them. She blew a deep breath out and relaxed. He was nowhere to be found. She quickly packed up camp and began to search for signs of Wolf, Ginny, and their dad. She didn't know that Jareth had been standing behind a tree watching her dream through the crystal just as she had anticipated him to. He chuckled as she walked away and began to follow her at a safe distance so she didn't notice his presence.

Throughout the night he watched her sleep and knew the exact moment that she had begun to dream. He immediately summoned a crystal ball to satisfy his curiosity and intrigue. He watched in silence as it all played out and was taken aback at his expression and demeanor when they kissed. It was not at all devious or playful, and not in his typical mode of operating. However, it was something that deep in his heart, he could sense he would do, as a deeper level of emotions hidden away from the world and even himself. He felt an odd pull at his heart as the dream ended. When she stirred, he knew that he would have to conceal himself, so he tucked behind the tree he had been leaning on.

When she packed her campsite and belongings into her stolen satchel, donned her weapons, and left, he followed her, but at a safe and unnoticeable distance. Something in his soul kept nagging him, and the word "prophecy" kept resurfacing in his mind. It was once said that a daughter of Anthony would break the cycle and end the curse, but even though Sarah was such a woman, she wasn't the woman from the prophecy. He refused to chase figments of his imagination any longer, and couldn't allow himself to believe it, or could he? Would he yet again risk his heart and kingdom for a mere mortal girl? And, why was he still following her? What was it about this woman that made him start all over just as it was years ago? His mind reeled and taunted him, playing at emotions and facts. Sooner or later, he would have to return to his kingdom if nothing more than to clear his mind.

Liz was perplexed. She thought as she walked for miles, or so it seemed, and racked her brain as to who this amazing yet infuriating man was. She was sure that he was following her. The owl that he had transformed from and into man was the same owl she had seen before when at the camp with her father, sister, and wolf. It certainly had the same colors. There was something else, though, that seemed familiar about it….

"Spare me some food", she heard an old woman say.

Torn from her thoughts, she looked around to see an elderly woman in pauper's clothing holding out her hand with an innocent and honest look on her face.

She replied, "I don't have any food, and what I do have is stolen from bandits that tried to kill me, but the money probably belongs to the people anyway". She reached out her hand after digging in her bag and offered the woman some gold Wendells from a small satchel.

"Because of your kindness and valor, I will teach you a lesson," she said.

Jareth watched this interaction with anticipation and eagerness. He knew that the woman was really a sprite of wisdom that roamed the Disenchanted Forest offering wisdom to those who showed her kindness, and he also knew that Liz would help her if she could. He was curious to see what this "lesson" was.

"You will discover who you're looking for within one who travels with you. He has known you since you've known him, and his intentions will be unveiled when you choose to love him." The old woman began to walk away after she spoke, but Liz stopped her.

"Thank you. But before you go, have you seen my sister and father? They're traveling with a wolf…"Liz let her sentence trail off.

"They have passed this way. But they turned off the road, and you should too," said the woman.

Jareth's eyes narrowed at the words of the sprite, and he immediately turned to leave the forest through a portal he had summoned. The sound caught Liz's attention and as she turned to see what it was the sprite vanished from sight. Mildly vexed, she simply turned in the direction that the old woman had pointed her and began walking again, and again, she found herself lost in thought, but this time with somewhat of a direction to lose herself in.

As she tumbled the "lesson" over in her mind, she realized what was said. _"He has known you since you've known him"._ She stopped walking and looked up at a tree with a hole in a knot in the center of the trunk. _"That could be any one of the men I travel with,"_ she thought. _"All except"_ …..suddenly an owl roosted in the knot hole perched on the ledge, and at that precise moment a flood of images of the same exact owl that had been following her around from camp to camp burst into her mind's eye. Time and time again she would see this owl. Almost every single night since she first read the little brown book she had been given by her mother. Ever since her sixteenth birthday, when she received the book, she had seen that owl. She thought it was just her imagination at first, but she had forfeit thinking it was actually Jareth almost a week after discovering owls in New York near Central Park weren't that uncommon. To realize that it _was_ Jareth the entire time, and that he _was_ following her was so shocking that she had to sit down for a moment. What did that mean? What did he want?

"Oh! MY! GOSH! HE HAS HEARD EVERY WORD I HAVE EVER SAID ABOUT HIM!" She screamed in revelation. "I am so _mortified_! I mean, he knows how I felt about him when I thought he wasn't real. He _must_ know how I would feel about him now that he _is_ real!"

She sat back against the tree and let the thoughts run their due process. She was caught somewhere between shock and sanity. She was also somewhere between embarrassment and bliss. She still had a little schoolgirl crush on the character of Jareth. She never let it grow beyond that because she never thought that he was real. Now that he is, could she really love him? She always said that she would have treated him better if she were in Sarah's shoes. Now she has a chance to treat him the way that she had always wanted to. She decided that she would begin with an apology and try to be his friend. When she was used to the idea of his reality, she would venture into deeper waters, that is…. only if he was willing to go there first.

Jareth walked right through the throne room of his castle and went to the study. He had to do some reading and quickly if he wanted to stand a chance at protecting Liz. He never had a problem, like most fae, of losing power from being away from the fae world for too long, but he did have enemies that would see him fail at removing his curse and restoring his kingdom. He didn't know if he could trust her, but he did know that she wasn't like other mortal girls. There was something more about Liz that he needed to uncover, and in order to do that, he needed his books.

He wasted no time in rummaging through the organized pile of books. There were only two that he needed. One would tell him about the potential enemy that she will have to face, and soon, and the other holds a secret about her past that she has not yet uncovered herself.

He flipped through the pages of the first book going straight to the chapters on the Disenchanted Forest. He read about the past of the Evil Queens and the huntsmen that they would employ and enthrall. They were always given a magical crossbow that never missed the heart of a living thing, either plant or animal. This meant that Liz was in grave danger and needed constant protection, a worthy risk when his kingdom is doubly in danger. He paused only to ponder the ways that he would have to constantly protect her, as only magic negates magic. There was no way to protect her from the dart of the bow without putting himself at risk and constantly watching her. He would have no choice but to be man by day and owl by night.

Torn from his thoughts, he began to research her father in the other book. He was sure that he'd seen her father before, but he was so old and different now, that he wasn't sure if it was truly the same fae he'd had to face a thousand years ago. Opening the book, he combed through it. He read until he found it. "Antony the Great", it read, "Valiant Hero and Worthy of Honor". Disgusted, Jareth tightened his grip and looked down at the picture in the book. He was definitely older and fatter, but it was the same fae. He must have given his power to his daughter. There is only one way to test it, and that meant putter her in harm's way. He would have to force her to use her magic. Manipulation isn't his style, but with the huntsman on the loose after her and her sister, perhaps he wouldn't have to.

Liz pulled herself up from the ground and dusted herself off. It was a lot to take in, but somehow she was already becoming more familiar with the idea than she had anticipated. She began her trek again, but this time, as she did, she heard talking and movement coming from up ahead, and it was moving in her direction. She quickly hid behind the tree until she saw them come out from behind the bushes and brush.

"Oh my gosh! I am so glad to see you guys!", she exclaimed.

They were all startled by the sudden outburst in sound, but Virginia actually jumped.

"Don't do that! You scared Virginia," Tony said.

"Oh stop it, Tone." Wolf rolled his eyes and slightly grinned a sideways grin at the jumpy old man.

"I'm fine, Dad, she just startled me. I thought it was someone trying to kill us or something." Virginia tried to calm the mood and sooth it over as though nothing happened. Typical Virginia.

"I'm sorry. It's just been a weird journey and I have had a lot on my mind. I'll tell you later. Let's just go find somewhere to set up camp. I don't know about you, but I'm tired." That was the only response that Elizabeth had to say. With that the team just set out to find firewood and food to make camp.

Liz volunteered to help with finding firewood. She was usually the outdoors type, but she was not usually this quiet. Ginny couldn't help but notice and she immediately volunteered to help her.

"Ok. What's going on? You daydream a lot, but you're never this quiet." Ginny's inquiry poked at Liz's spirit. She was asking questions that she almost never did, personal questions. It was typical for her to leave Liz alone, but every once in a while, her care for her sister shone through.

"I don't really know. I met a woman on the road who told me that we were being followed and that 'they intend to kill you', and I just don't know what to think." Liz knew that it wasn't sufficient, but how could she tell her sister that she might be in love with a man that she thought was imaginary for the last nine years? How could she tell her that that same man is not a man but a magical fae creature? How could she tell her that she was lost somewhere between a fairy tale and reality in that she didn't know if she loved him because of the fairy tale or if it was real? She was perplexed and knew that it wasn't going to be resolved until she saw him again and spent time with him.

"Fine, you know what, don't tell me. I get it. You don't want to talk about it," Ginny knew how to push Liz into talking, and a little disinterestedness always worked.

"You really don't want to know. You wouldn't believe me, and it's one of those things that we just don't see eye to eye on," Liz was still sure that Ginny wouldn't be interested in hearing it or understand.

"Try me." Virginia spoke stern but teasingly to her.

"That owl that's been following me around? Yeah, that's Jareth. The Goblin King, you know, from my book? He's _real_. He's been watching me for the last _nine years_. Its bugging me because I know he's heard all of my swooning and childish daydreams about him. And now, now that I _know_ he's real, I don't know if I am in love with him because of a fantasy life I created in my daydreams, or because of a _real life_ situation. It doesn't help that he saved my life from a group of bandits. I just can't wait to see him again, so I can know for sure that I fell in love for the right reasons, and because I _truly know_ his character as he _really_ is.

"Wow." That was all that Ginny could muster. She even needed time to process it, but unfortunately, she didn't have the luxury of not believing her sister, as she was in a fairy tale land running through the Queen Snow White's kingdom trying to save her grandson from destruction and find a way back home. "Liz, I really can't tease you this time. I mean… look at where we are? How could you or even I have actually known he was real? I don't know anything about him, but I definitely think you shouldn't rush into anything until you know his real character. I mean, what if he's not like he is in the book?"

"That's exactly what I meant. I just want to try to befriend him, first, then see where it goes. But I have always said that I would never take him for granted. What if he really does love me? Anyway. Those are the kinds of questions I have stuck in my head right now. I just want to speak to him myself, that's all."

As they approached the camp site, firewood in hand, they saw the men sitting around the place that they had chosen for the fire. Looking up, Ginny noticed a barn owl, the same silver and white one, sitting on a branch above wolf and looking directly at her sister.

"You may get your chance," she said, "look up there." Ginny pointed out the owl only using her face.

Liz saw him. Her heart was pounding. She was both excited and nervous. What would she say to him? How would she act? Would she even be able to speak? As she was struggling to find her footing in a conversation that she was anxious to have, Jareth flew off of the branch, around her in a circle and then transformed standing directly in front of her. She wanted to faint, but she found her strength. There was a different expression on his face this time, and he seemed as though he had something to say.

He stood in front of her with his hands in fists on his hips, and his head cocked to the right. His eyes were mildly narrow, but not angry at her. He turned around and faced her father, who was staring at him in shock. It was very clear that he not only knew who this fae was, but that they didn't like each other at all.

"Antony," was all that he said, and it was said pointedly angry.

"Jareth," Tony replied with a nervous and protective tone.

"You haven't told her, have you? You have kept it a secret." Jareth was angry that she had not been trained, and his tone was accusing of the fact that Tony kept it a secret to protect her from Jareth.

"No. No. I haven't. I was trying to keep her safe. Telling her would have put her at risk. At risk for people like you to come in and take her away." Tony was almost indignant, but his cowardice was still shining through.

"People like me? And what is your opinion of people like me?" Jareth said this while walking in slow circles around Tony. He was talking low and choosing his words wisely.

"Jareth?" Liz's voice caught attention and his heart melted. He tried to hide the effect that she had on him, but after all this time of watching her, and even though he erected careful precautions against falling in love with her, something was beginning to change in his heart. He couldn't let it show.

"Can we take a walk?" She saw that the conversation between he and her father wasn't going well, and whatever secret her father had kept, it obviously caused Jareth pain. It was seeing him in that pain that shook her from her fear and awe. She leapt into action without a thought.

Without saying a word, Jareth passed one last look at Tony in anger before obliging Liz. He followed her into the woods with his hands behind his back and watched as she walked into a clearing where the crescent moon was shining down on her. She didn't notice that she was glowing herself. She was even more beautiful in the nighttime as she was in the daylight. Her long blonde hair was in a braid down her back from a ponytail. She wore a long sleeve shirt made of cotton that was fitted and purple. _Purple suits her_ , he thought, _it rings of royalty_. She wore black jeans and black boots that went up to her mid-calf and zipped on one side but laced down the front. She reminded him of someone who was both a warrior and a biker. She looked strong and elegant. He suddenly got the urge to walk over to her and touch her face with his bare hands but knew that he would awaken urges that he wasn't sure he wanted to awaken if he did. He knew that she was growing in his heart, but he still wasn't sure if he was caught in lust or love with her. He knew from watching her that she would never love him if he could never bring himself past lust and into love. But he still didn't trust her not to make selfish and heartless choices as Sarah did, and other women before her.

"Jareth, I have to apologize to you for the way that I've been acting. I'd like you to understand that I wasn't aware of the magical realms being real until this last week of my life. I didn't want to assume that you were who I thought you were until I realized that you've been watching me for the last nine years. Now I am trying to figure out where I stand with you. I have had a childish daydream crush on you this whole time, and now you're real. You're here, you're right in front of me. I just want to get to know you, to trust you, as a person, a real person." Liz spoke fluently, as though she had planned the whole speech, but it all came to in the moment. It was as if her heart just poured out into his without overwhelming emotion or tension. It was fluid and peaceful.

Her words poured out on him like oil. They flowed over his heart and soul as smooth as gossamer. Immediate understanding came over him, but he still wanted to be closer to her. He moved her way and she didn't move away, but her demeanor wasn't proud. So unlike Sarah's posture and stance against him. He stood so close to her that his chest was almost touching her shoulder.

He spoke, "Elizabeth, I have always understood your position. I knew that you were brought up in a world without magic before I ever set foot in it. But there is something about you that you should know. You are not a human. Your father was a fae, but when you were born, he gave his power to you."

She could feel the heat of his chest on her shoulder. _He's so close._ _I mean, did he have to stand so close?_ From this distance he made it difficult for her think let alone to conceal her emotions from him. Her heart was pounding and his breath on her neck and face was warm and sweet. His breath was like fruit and hazelnuts, but his body smelled like leather and fresh air. _Does he ride horses?_ She was almost too distracted to notice what he said. " _I_ am a fae?," she replied? "Why would Dad keep that from me? What was he trying to protect me from?"

Jareth moved from her left side to her right. He shifted his weight and leaned in just a bit closer and said, "from me." After he spoke, he moved around her and stood in front of her to look into her eyes. He wanted to see her reaction.

Liz didn't blink or seem the least bit phased. If she were honest with herself, she was more focused on his general splendor than the course of the conversation. He was absolutely glistening in the scant moonlight. She thought to herself that he may actually be _emitting_ light. He was dressed in the full outfit. The one that was drawn in the little brown book that was given to her. He wore the black cape with the black peasant shirt and black leather crop. He donned the black pants, his black boots, and his black gloves. His blonde hair, which pointed straight up was absolutely gorgeous. His eye makeup made his blue eyes stand out. She began to wonder if the book's picture of him was so accurate, then what else was accurate in the portrayal of Jareth in the book's words? "Why are you so dangerous?"

"Haven't you heard?" He asked the question while moving in the circular pattern that he was previously encircling Tony with. "I steal children and turn them into goblins."

"Not because you want to. They wished their children away. How does that make you dangerous just because spoiled rotten kids who think they are entitled to everything can't handle someone needing them more than they need themselves?" She had always been upset at the picture of a villain placed on his head, when the truth is that those kids _did_ wish Jareth to take their siblings and charges, not the other way around.

Jareth didn't say anything for a full minute. He had to catch himself. _Was she really taking his side? Did she really care about him? Could she be the one who sees beyond reality and into the truth?_ For that minute, all he could do was stand in front of her again looking into her eyes. He noticed that they had turned from brown to green when she had faced the bandits, but now they were completely blue. _How beautiful!_ He cocked his head and smiled slightly at her. "I have read that book you read so often, Elizabeth. I wondered at your interpretation of it. Tell me, do you think its accurate?", he asked.

"So far, I do.", she responded. "I think that so far, it speaks the truth, and I even think that you could have been the one to write it. Did you?"

"And if I did?" He walked closer to her and looked down at her eyes. He was searching for her emotions, now. He wanted to know how she really felt, what she really thought.

"Then I would ask you if you were honest with your personality and character traits in writing it," she answered.

"And if I didn't?" He was so close now, that he was tempted again to touch her on the face. It was difficult to refuse. Did she know how beautiful she was?

"I would ask you who did so I could ask them the same question," she said, "why?"

"Being a fae means that you have the ability to know secrets about people and other fae." Not able to withhold his hand from her face any longer he removed a glove and lightly touched her cheek with the back of his index finger, "I can tell that you are attracted to me and that you are fighting within yourself as to whether or not you love me."

Liz gulped really hard. She thought that she'd hidden it better. But the illustration gave her insight into what he was talking about. She already knew his character, not from the book, but because she isn't human. She knew what he was like and how to respond to him. She didn't have to guess, or even take time to learn him. Taking time was the way a human would respond to it, but somehow, through fae magic she didn't know existed, she discovered another way.

"Fae can connect their hearts together to learn more about each other, can't they?", she asked.

"Yes." It was his only response, and he never removed his hand. In fact, he was temped to use his whole hand to touch her face. He wanted to let her in, but keep her at bay as well.

"What does being fae mean for me, Jareth?"

"It means that you must learn to defend yourself. Both with magic and with sword.", he said.

"How and when do we begin?", she asked.

"Not tonight. Tomorrow. You need rest. You have had a long day.", there was care in his voice again and his expression was sincere. He was hearing his rebuke to Hoggle in his head again, but this time, it didn't bother him as deeply as before. No, he would just ignore it this time.

In silence, they walked back to camp where Virginia, Tony, and Wolf were waiting. Tony stood up as soon as he saw them coming, preparing to defend his daughter, but was met with Liz's hand in a calming and reassuring gesture that it was not needed. Tony walked over to Liz and asked if she was alright, but she simply reassured him that she was and told him that they would speak about it soon. Temporarily satisfied with that answer, Tony watched as Jareth set to work preparing her bedding and food for her. He remained by her side the whole night and they barely spoke a word, but never had Tony seen Jareth care for someone in such a way as that night. It didn't mean that he trusted the fae with his daughter.

When Virginia first saw the owl transform from beast to man, she was in total shock. She sat there on the ground slack-jawed and wide eyed until the couple were long out of sight in the woods. When she finally shut her mouth, she looked over at Wolf, and he had already prepared the answer for her.

"That's Jareth. He's the Goblin King from the fae world. He's not a mortal being. He's…." Wolf was interrupted by Virginia…

"He's a fae. He's the man from Liz's book. She was telling me about him earlier today." She was still in shock as she spoke.

After that, nothing else was said at camp. Even after they returned, there was nothing said. The excitement had taken its toll and the shock had still not worn off. The only two people who seemed to be carrying on as usual was Elizabeth and Jareth. They seemed as though they had known each other for decades as they moved about and prepared for the night.

Jareth laid next to Liz on the ground next to her bedding. He was laying on his right side with his left leg bent and slightly upright. He was rested on his right elbow with his left arm laid across his right wrist. He was staring at her and she was staring at him. Nothing was said for a while. The other members of the party were watching in awkward silence as the two of them just stared at each other. The minds of the both of them reeling with questions about self and other. Mostly they wondered secretly whether the other loved them. They were unaware, for some brief moments, that their hearts were slowly becoming united. They stayed like that until long after the rest of their party had fallen asleep.

"You need your rest, Elizabeth,"he spoke at last, "you're in danger and need energy for training.

"Liz," she said, "call me Liz."

He reached over and touched her face again, but this time, with a still gloved hand. She took his hand in hers and removed his glove from it. Operating off of pure instinct and reflex, she took his hand and touched it palm down to her cheek. The touch of her skin, and the smell of it, as wild roses, flooded his senses with ecstasy. It was all he could do to keep himself from defying the rules of gentlemanly conduct.

She didn't want to go to sleep. The moment was too sweet, but slowly she felt her eyes beginning to close and her grip on his hand softened. She wasn't sure why she had placed his hand on her cheek, but it felt good. It felt especially good to have such a sweet and soft moment with a fae who was known for his mischief and the way he twisted words and situations around. It was her favorite part about him, though she didn't know why, and she never wanted that to change. That was her last thought as she drifted off.

She began to dream again…

 _Jareth was standing holding onto a beautiful young fae woman. She had long black hair was dressed provocatively. The dress she had on exposed her voluptuous features. She had an air of seduction about her, but when she addressed Jareth she put on a facade of sweetness and innocence. Jareth seemed to be in love with this woman. Sarah watched as in her dream, Jareth offered the woman flowers, favors, and bent over backwards to win her approval. Each time he courted the woman, she obliged him, but she couldn't shake the feeling of manipulation that she got from the woman's eyes. Something didn't sit well with her._

 _Over the course of time, she noticed that even though his attentions to her were constant and enduring, the woman refused to marry him. She would accept his gifts and attentions, but never his proposals. Her heart began to break for Jareth. How could she not see? How could she not love him?_

 _The next scene that played through her mind was one that she would not soon forget. Jareth went to the woman's house to call on her. When she didn't answer he became concerned and entered the house. Though, through the entire dream there was no sound coming from any of it, she could tell that he was calling out her name._

 _When there was no response he searched the house and found her in the basement. She had a child strapped to a chair and her features were quite different. She had transformed into a hideous Baba Yaga and was about to devour the child when Jareth turned the child into a goblin._

 _She watched as the Baba Yaga woman turned on him and made accusations against Jareth. He was deemed dangerous and was cursed along with his land. On the council was her father, Tony. He was the one who made the final judgments against Jareth._

 _She watched as his heart turned cold. He began to mold the cursed land into his playground. He chose to test stubborn and arrogant children charged with watching their younger siblings with giving them the power to wish away their unwanted attachments. He challenged them to run the labyrinth and either live a life free from their siblings, or try to win them back. If they succeeded, he let them both go, but if they failed, they were both transformed into goblins. He was more cruel to teenage girls with brown hair than any others, that is, until he fell in love with Sarah. That's when stipulations were then added to the curse by the council, more specifically, by Antony, that Jareth must fall in love, and the girl love him back, so that the curse could be broken._

Sarah woke up in a cold sweat. It was a lot to take in in one night. She looked over and saw that Jareth was still next to her. He had been watching her intently. He knew that she wasn't having a pleasant dream by the way that she was thrashing.

"Usually my dreams about you are more pleasant", she said.

"Oh?" He had been watching through the crystal. Love or lust, he couldn't change his mischievous nature. He had to know what was causing her to talk in her sleep.

"I saw what happened. I know what my father did," she said.

"Go back to sleep, Liz. You need your rest." He was unwilling to discuss the painful past.

She could see that he wasn't ready to discuss it, and she was too tired to press him on the subject. She fell fast asleep again, but had no more dreams. Before she knew it, the sun was rising. Jareth moved to a position where he was partially above her and extremely close to her face. He whispered her name in an attempt to rouse her from her sleep without waking the others.

"It's time, Liz. Wake up," he said.

She didn't respond with words, she just rubbed her face and eyes and rolled onto her back to look up at him. Something was different in the way he was looking at her. She shook her head in affirmation and began to move out of her bedding, but he didn't move.

 _Did she know how ravishing she was? How he had to restrain himself from kissing her? She was nothing like the other women, or Sarah, in features. She was blonde like him, yet something in him screamed that she was better than the lot of them combined._ He thought to himself as she stared up at him.

She wanted nothing more than to just kiss him in that moment. She thought about the closeness of his mouth to hers. She thought about the way he was looking at her with desire and reflection. She thought about the new outfit he was wearing of a white peasant shirt with a low cut chest line and the black leather vest. He was wearing the crescent moon medallion around his neck and it dangled onto her shoulder as he leaned over her. He had on his grey pants and black boots. His chest was exposed. She wanted to touch him there. To just reach out and touch the chest so close to her arm. Instead, she reached up and touched a hand to his shoulder. This tore him from his reverie. Tempted as he was to kiss her, he simply told her to get up and follow him.

In the same clearing as the night before Jareth began his lessons on magic and self-defense with Liz.

"The first thing you must do is clear your mind. Close your eyes," when she obeyed he said, "Good, now defend yourself."

When she opened her eyes she saw that he had drawn his sword and was already on the attack. Quickly she dodged his swing but he spun around and attacked again.

"Defend yourself!" He yelled at her. He knew that if she were to succeed she would need to use magic to defend herself.

Startled, Liz shifted her mentality into her combat mode. At the next swing of his blade she quickly disarmed him. Even though she was successful, he just continued to attack with his bare hands. Becoming more and more violent in his attacks, he knew he would have to resort to desperate measures.

In circles they danced as she moved like water around him, dodging attacks and striking successful blows herself. But with one swift move of his feet he had her on her back and pinned her down.

"You need to defend yourself, Liz. I can't help you all the time," he said trying to warn her of the next move he would have to make.

"I am. What is it you need me to do?" She asked.

"Use your magic. This is life or death." He was very close to her face when he said this.

Without warning he summoned knife and tried to cut open her shirt. In the process he accidentally nicked her stomach. But it was just the thrust into action that she needed.

Enraged, she threw Jareth off of her and used her magic to toss him into a nearby tree. Not even realizing what she had done, she immediately healed her stomach cut and then looked in his direction. She marched over to him. By now he was already back onto his feet. He took the knife and struck again, but she made it disappear. When the knife was gone and he realized that she was using her magic, he blocked her next blow by grabbing her arm and pulling her close to his chest. With her arms pinned behind him and looking deep into her eyes, he began to soothe her temper.

"Shhhhhhh. That's enough. You've done well." He said.

"Don't ever do that again," she growled with tears in her eyes.

Even though she knew what he was trying to do, she still hadn't wanted to be reminded of that awful night.

"Where were you?" She snapped out at him. "where were you? You have all this power, and you've been watching me all this time, so where were you? Why didn't you stop him!?"

He couldn't say a word. Pain was in his heart for her. His anger was burning against the man who stole her innocence from her. He had decided to come to court her under the rouse of a normal man, when he came upon an alley bearing much commotion. As he neared the alley he saw a man running away from a disheveled young woman laying on the ground beaten and bloody. He quickly pursued the man and transformed him into a monster and sent him into his world, then ran back to help the woman. He may not trust women, but he certainly doesn't believe in the abuse and battery. When he saw that it was Elizabeth, he nearly died inside. His anger was aroused so greatly that he wished he had killed the man in cold blood. Knowing now what emotional trauma he had caused, he was seriously considering it. But he couldn't tell her he was too late. He couldn't tell her that he didn't have a good enough reason. He just stood there holding her and letting her hit him on the chest and cry.

"Why?! What could have stopped _you_ from helping me?"

She didn't say anything else. She just stood there crying and clinging to his shirt as if it gave her some kind of comfort. He stood there holding her and allowing her to purge her emotions. It wasn't until she felt something wet hit the top of her head, that she looked up and saw tears in his own eyes. _Is he crying_ , she thought.

He hated himself in that moment. How could he have chosen that route. He knew it would hurt her enough to spur her into action, but now seeing how much pain she had been hiding inside of her, he thought that it was careless.

"I give you my word. Never again." He said it as tenderly as he could, wanting her to know how much he cared and how much he regretted pushing her so far.

She couldn't respond. She just shook her head and looked at him with hope and trust.

"Come, that's enough for one day," he said as he led her back to the camp site.

16


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two.**

By the time the pair had reached the camp the others were up and had continued in their pursuit of Acorn the Dwarf. Jareth knew that she couldn't keep wearing a torn t-shirt, and she was in need of refreshing anyway. Frankly, there were no showers and no sinks for which to brush teeth. Fae were not in need of such amenities, but she had not been living as a fae and her powers were barely awakened.

"Your shirt is torn," he pointed out. "Use your magic to change your clothes."

"Ok," was all she could say.

"Focus. Think about what you want and then allow yourself to have it." He was trying not to look at her when he spoke to her. He hadn't realized that her shirt was completely ripped open from bottom to top, and only hanging on together by a mere thread.

She looked over at Jareth, still not trying to look at her, and took a deep breath. If there was anything that she ever wanted, it was to dress like him. It marked her true personality. How she felt inside was the freedom and royalty that defined Jareth's attire. She imagined a more feminine version, to every detail, even the way she would smell as a fae, and then allowed her heart to be at peace with it.

She could hear the ether swirling around her like a mist. From head to toe it transformed her. She could smell the body odor transforming from raw human stink to the smell of frankincense and roses. Her hair was no longer oily and messy, but it was in a beautiful fishbone French braid from her scalp to down her back. Her shirt was not a torn piece of cotton, but a beautiful frilly peasant shirt, with a more modest scooped neckline than Jareth's, as to cover her assets modestly, and a corset vest that was her support instead of the brazier of the human world. She wore grey pants that came up over her hips and tucked underneath the corset. Her boots were black, but had more of a heel than his. Her gloves were grey instead of black, and she imitated the pendant he wore by creating a white cloth choker necklace with a miniature version of the pendant in the center of it.

Something different happened in her transformation that neither of them had expected. When she was finished with her transformation, and the acceptance of her fae nature, she realized that something extra, and heavy, was hanging off of her back. It was not a cape, but a set of enormous white wings. They were the shape of owl's wings, but they were massive. When she closed them, they dragged on the ground. She was already five foot and seven inches tall, and now she wore four inch heels adding to that height, putting her wingspan at over seven feet on one side.

Jareth was stunned at her appearance. He wanted to ask her why she chose his style of clothing but was too taken aback at her beauty and magnificence. She was already more beautiful than any other woman in the human world, and even could stand in comparison to other fae women, but now he was certain that she was more gorgeous than any other creature he had ever seen. He'd been around for over a thousand years, so he had seen a lot. When he saw her wings rising up out of her back, he nearly gasped. He took a half step backward and shifted his weight. Immediately he knew that she is the woman from the prophecy, the one who would break the curse and restore his kingdom and honor. Part of him didn't want the curse broken, he didn't have to trust anyone if he spent his life alone, but then…. At this point, did he really want to live alone? Was he really allowing her into his heart? Could he trust her? She never was the type to belie her character, but she wasn't exactly trusting either. Could she ever trust him?

Liz was standing there in awe of the work that she had done, but feeling as though she wasn't quite ready to learn to fly, and having had enough of the day, she made them dissolve into her back as a fluid motion. She walked over to Jareth and touched a hand to his shoulder.

"Thanks. I think I need a nap, though. This morning was a bit trying." She then created her bedding next to the fire pit and laid down on it.

"I quite agree," Jareth replied, and followed her to the spot on the ground next to her.

Still feeling a bit of regret for the morning's lessons, he laid next to her and wrapped his arms around her tightly.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, "for everything."

"I know. I forgive you." She genuinely did, but she had to know… "What happened the night of my attack?"

"I wanted to see you. I planned to be a human man for you to meet. Perhaps tell you the truth with time and a relationship. As I was approaching your apartment, I heard a woman screaming for help in the alley. I rushed to her aid. When I saw her, I gave chase to the vile creature that thrust himself on her. I transformed him into a beast and cast him into the Bog of Eternal Stench. Sir Diddymus keeps guard over him there. When I returned to give the woman aid, I saw that it was you." He dug his face into her shoulder. "I thought I had lost any chance of love I once sought. It crushed me. From that day forward, I have watched over you and swore to protect you."

She listened to the story with tears in her eyes. She thought his voice had sounded familiar and soothing, but hadn't connected the dots. He was the man who stayed by her side and nursed her back to health. No wonder she had connected so quickly with him, and no wonder he rushed to prevent the bandits from doing their work.

"Did you know that I called your name?" She paused a moment to allow him to answer.

"Yes, I came whenever you would call," he said.

"I didn't believe that it would work, but at night, when I was still healing, I would call your name. It was the only thing that ever gave me comfort. I could drift away into a fantasy land and that man couldn't hurt me anymore." She snuggled back into his chest as she spoke to him, and fell fast asleep.

He'd known that she'd called for him. Even when she wasn't sure in what she believed, she relied on him. He was sure that she never noticed he was actually there, but by the way that their whatever-it-was kind of relationship was rapidly evolving, he knew that conversations would have to be had. He knew that he cared for her, but he didn't really know why. The why is important when a fae's heart is on the line, or any heart for that matter.

Virginia, Tony, and Wolf continued to try to navigate the Disenchanted Forest. Wolf led them by only his sense of smell. They wandered around the entirety of the day seeking the dwarf and the magic mirror. Winding through the woods they barely spoke to one another until it began to get dark.

"We can't walk around all night," Ginny said.

"Oh yes we can. There's an evil murderer on the loose, remember?", said wolf.

"Sh!" Virginia heard something. It sounded like horses.

The party snuck up to a row of bushes and peered through them. Up ahead they found a gypsy camp. They were dancing around the fire and in relative comfort.

"What are supposed to do?", asked Virginia.

"Why join us of course!" The male voice came from behind them somewhere. When they turned to look, there was a hunting party surrounding them with knives and crossbows. They had no choice but to join the group and hope for the best.

In the camp they ate their hedgehog, danced with them, and sang songs with them. The elder woman of the gypsies read the trio's tarot cards and predicted their futures. She needed a clipping from Ginny's hair to read her fortunes, which wolf was wary about, but didn't try to argue with either of the two women. The night passed relatively peacefully.

That is until they departed early in the morning. Once all of the gypsies were asleep, Wolf woke Ginny and Tony and motioned them to leave silently. Virginia couldn't help herself from freeing some magical birds that were caged by the gypsies at the camp. The sound of banging against the caravan of the elder woman from the cage door of the bird kept there, opening caused the gypsies to stir and follow in pursuit of them. Oddly enough, though, the old woman called the hunting party off and they returned to the camp.

Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the trio of travelers, the gypsy elder had cursed Virginia's hair, and it began to grow to unprecedented lengths as they traveled through the forest seeking shelter from the storm and the night. They had to find some place to stop, or Ginny would get tangled in the trees with no way to free her enormously long hair from the ensnarement.

As they searched for shelter, they stumbled upon an old run-down cottage tucked away in a small clearing in the forest. Virginia and Wolf immediately recognized it as Snow White's cottage. They drug the golden dog and Virginia's hair inside and lit a fire.

"You know, we really shouldn't have a fire, there is someone following us." Wolf tried to warn Virginia against drying her hair by the fire, but she was stubborn.

"I don't care, I am not going to bed with wet hair," she said while holding a lock of hair in the direction of the heat and flame.

Wolf and Virginia stayed up for a long while talking about the kingdoms, Wolf's life, and Virginia's hurt, which she kept constantly denying. Wolf wondered secretly if she knew where her mother was. He knew, but did she know? He wondered if she would ever allow people into her heart and heal from the abandonment she faced from her mother.

Virginia kept her feelings buried deep. She didn't want anyone to know how alone and afraid she was all the time. She figured that if she didn't let people in, then she wouldn't have to deal with the pain of them leaving her. She didn't tell anyone that her mother leaving made her feel unwanted. She had hoped that she could bury it beneath a facade of bravery and hard heartedness. To Wolf, it shone through like a diamond in the sunlight, and that aggravated her.

They fell asleep talking to one another, face to face. Virginia, ever defensive and in denial of her growing feelings for Wolf, and Wolf swooning at all of the sights, sounds, and smells of Virginia. There were no dreams, there were only thoughts, one for the other, of emotions and circumstances. Wolf thought, _"I could convince her to stay with me here in this world, and we could raise a family with cute little wolf cubs running around everywhere. Ooooooh! Huff puff! If only I could persuade her to stay!"_

Virginia thought, " _No. NO! I am NOT in love with him. I mean, even if I_ _was_ _in love with him, which I'm not, I wouldn't be able to stay here in this world with him. I have a job, not the best job, but a job. And I'm going to open a restaurant someday. If he came with me, he would eat all the food and scare away my guests! He couldn't stay with me, and long-distance relationships never work. No. It would never work anyway. Right?"_

Their thoughts faded into the blackness of sleep and once there, they didn't wake until morning.

Liz slept the rest of the day and all through the night. Neither one of them realized the extent of her fatigue. When they woke, it took Liz by surprise that her breath didn't smell and her teeth were already clean. _"One of the many awesome features of being a fae,"_ she thought. Jareth was lying on the ground propped up on one arm looking at her. His features serene, and his body perfectly still. His expression was almost one of sheer happiness. His mouth wore no smile, but his eyes seemed to emulate a smile that she could not explain. She rolled over to look back at him.

She touched her hand to his chest, but this time, it was his turn to remove his glove. He was resolved to confess his feelings for her, the good, the bad, and the mischievous, but she had put her finger over his lips. He wanted to feel her skin against his in an innocent way. The simple touch of her fingertips first on his chest, then the palm of her hand made his heart jump. That's what he needed to feel. Its what he needed to know.

He didn't speak. He took it all in. What was happening to them? Was she in love with him? Could she ever be? Until a few weeks ago, her crush was based on the fact that he wasn't real. Would she feel the same or even dare to dive a little deeper now that he was real and she was fae? He knew that they couldn't stay in limbo forever, soon they would need to discuss where they were with each other.

"Get ready, we have training to do."

With that, the both of them removed themselves from the ground and set to work. Jareth tested her magical abilities as well as her combat. He was ruthless, but careful not to provoke her pain.

When Virginia and Wolf woke up, Ginny's hair was growing up the staircase that led upstairs where Tony was sleeping.

"Oh, my God" ,she shrieked!

"What, what?" Wolf woke to a start with his primary concern for the woman whose voice let out the shriek.

"Its growing up the stairs!"

"Don't panic," was all that Wolf could muster out.

Together the three of them quickly gathered as many cutting tools as they could find. They headed outside to attempt to cut the growing tangled trusses from her head, but to no avail. Try as they might, none of the utensils would cut the cursed locks. Just as they were about to give up hope, and Virginia let out an over-dramatic exclamation, a little bird landed on a branch just above her head.

"Because you helped us, we will help you." The bird began to tell them of a woodsman with a magic axe that cuts anything that it hits. When she had told all she could to the fumbling trio, she flew quickly again.

Without hesitation, the group got up and marched on their way to find the magic axe. Traveling for hours, they searched the Disenchanted Forest for the woodsman, but then Wolf caught a whiff of something. They had forgotten all about their mysterious hunter in pursuit of Virginia and their deaths. He was gaining on them now. They had no time to lose, and with Virginia's hair so long and unkempt, there was no way to out run him.

Wolf devised a plan to bury Virginia, Tony, and the golden dog, while he ran in circles to throw him off their trail. Rather efficiently, he was able to both dig and hide them beneath the leaves of the forest floor. Then he ran off to start his circles, but little did he know that as soon as he'd finished, the queen's huntsman had already arrived.

The huntsman walked around the forest clearing looking for signs of the group carefully. Every step was intentional and slowed so as not to make a sound. He barely crinkled a dried leaf. He could find no sign of them, and as he turned to a new direction, he heard a noise, a sneeze. Without doubt, he turned around, and Virginia knew that she and Tony had to get out of there as quickly as possible. But there was one fault with their plan.

Virginia couldn't run as fast with her arms full of her hair, so she dropped it and ran for her life. Unfortunately, that was just the edge on them that the huntsman needed. He quickly caught up to the ends of her hair and stepped down - hard. The force jerked Virginia backward and on the ground, and Tony, though upset, knew that he couldn't go back for her. Who would save her from the huntsman if Wolf didn't know where they were and Tony was dead?

He carried her to his tree house hidden deep in the forest with a magically concealed door. She was terrified and just knew that she was going to die. She tried to lie to the huntsman, but no matter how hard she tried, he saw through her every defense. Fortunately for her, though, the huntsman received a message from a little bell on the wall that had him conducting business elsewhere. She was relieved just enough for her thoughts to become coherently chaotic. _"Why couldn't I have been more like Liz"_ , she thought. _"I'm really regretting not going with her to self defense classes."_

As she sat there, she wished for Wolf and her father. She hoped help would come before the huntsman came back to take her life as he had promised. It wasn't long before the little bird that helped them before returned to her. Virginia sent a message with the little bird to her father and Wolf to find her. Off the bird went.

Tony and Wolf set out to find Ginny and as they went they stumbled across a man chopping wood.

"You haven't happened to see a woodsman with a magic axe around here, by any chance?" Tony asked in his usual desperate tone.

"I haven't seen anything. I'm blind," the woodsman replied.

Tony was surprised that he could chop anything without sight. The woodsman replied asking if Tony had ever seen a tree move to make his point. They didn't waste time. Tony asked if that was the magic axe, to which the woodsman replied in the affirmative.

"May we borrow it?" Tony tried to get to the point. He was in a hurry and wanted to save his daughter before the huntsman killed her.

"Oh, you may have my magic axe, if you can guess my name," the woodsman replied.

The stipulations were clear. If Tony guessed right before the woodsman finished chopping his pile of wood, then they got the axe. If he guessed wrong by the time the woodsman was finished, the woodsman got Wolf's head. In both desperation and a moment of what Tony thought was brilliance, they accepted.

When the little bird arrived to find Wolf and Tony, she saw that they not only had found the woodsman, but they were nearly out of chances at getting the axe. Tony was a really bad guesser at the woodsman's name. The woodsman would have Wolf's head before he ever guessed it correctly. She knew she had to help again. She quickly whispered the name that was in the hat next to the woodsman into Tony's ear. By the time she had told him, the woodsman was finished with the last log to chop.

"Just a minute," Tony shouted and paused for emphasis, "Juliet!"

Wolf gasped in joy and excitement. He was so relieved that the birds had helped again. The two of them left the clearing and headed in the direction the bird had shown them. They weren't too keen on solving the riddle that she had originally met them with.

When they arrived at the tree they called to Virginia and she informed them of the door, but they couldn't find it. Wolf ignored Tony's asinine remark to simply cut the tree down. He had a better idea. Wolf shouted up to Virginia.

"Virginia? How long is your hair now?"

"Ugh! Its longer than ever! Its…. No. NO! NOOOOOO!"

"I've always wanted to say this!" He said it turning to Tony, who had a look of disgust on his face. "Love of my life, let down your lustrous locks!"

Before long wolf had climbed the hair rope, causing Virginia an unimaginable amount of head and scalp pain. Once he made it inside he freed her and they were on their way to find the mirror again, and to cut the cursed hair off of her head.

They were interrupted by the huntsman before they could exit the house-tree. During the scuffle, the huntsman ended up falling onto one of his own bear traps. It had clamped tight around his knee and he had passed out. Wolf told Virginia to kill him, but she couldn't stoop to that level. So, the three of them went on their way leaving the huntsman as he was in his house-tree, alive. They wandered to another clearing just on the outskirts of the Disenchanted Forest and decided to camp there for the night.

Training was tough. Liz kept getting a sinking feeling in her gut that something was wrong with Ginny. She was distracted to say the least. She could tell by the look on Jareth's face that he was not happy with her distraction.

"Stop, please. I need a break," she said.

"Where is your head, Elizabeth?"

"I'm sorry. I am trying to push past it and not let it bother me, but I kept feeling like something is wrong with Ginny."

"I see." He walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her as he normally did when teaching her a new ability. "When you want to summon a spyglass, you do this."

He took her arm and made it move in a fluid circular motion creating a ripple in the air like the one the portal from the traveling mirror made. Then he made her hand reach forward and told her to say Ginny's name.

They saw the whole ordeal through the spyglass with the huntsman and the magical axe. They even witnessed Wolf cut her hair so short that she looked almost boyish. She was grateful that Wolf's aim wasn't any worse than it was. Seeing that she had been in trouble, but is now fine, they continued their work. It was another long day of training, and it didn't get any easier now that she was free from distractions.

Jareth's plan was to continue to intensify her training until she could stand up to him full power and toe-to-toe. He knew that she still needed to believe in herself. He knew that when the time was right, she would do what needed to be done and not hesitate, but he still wanted to push her as far as he could to prepare her for that moment.

As the day came to a close, they prepared camp in the usual manner. They made their fire, supper, and bed, and laid down. It was always with Liz on the bedding roll and Jareth on the ground. She didn't understand why he always was on the ground and not some kind of blanket at the very least, but then she presumed that it was because of his decency and respect for her that he did it. For a long time, despite how exhausted they were, they just looked up at the stars together, except, this time, Jareth wasn't holding onto her. He was lost in his own thoughts with his arms crossed behind his head on his back.

 _At some point I will have to tell her my intentions, and my feelings for her,_ Jareth thought. _I can't keep up this charade forever. She wants to take it slow, but time is short._ He decided that soon, perhaps even tomorrow, he would make a move that would change the pace of their growing relationship.

Brody wandered the woods in search of a trace of the fae man and his precious woman. He almost didn't see the old woman standing there staring at him and his crew while he examined a footprint to see if it was theirs.

"Whatta you wont?" Brody wasn't in the mood for games.

"Oh, nothing," she replied, "just thought you could use some help lookin' for that fae and his little female companion."

"Whatta ya know about them? Imma kill em, just so you know!"

"I was planning on it. I can help you. I have a potion that steals the life from a fae, if you want it, that is."

The offer was too good to refuse, but Brody was just smart enough to ask the right questions when it comes to magical people and doing their bidding.

"Whatta ya wont from me? I got gold."

She chuckled, "Keep your gold, boy, I need more than that from you."

He looked at her a bit confused, but followed her to her little hidden cabin, anyway.

"I need you. You're going to kill Jareth for me with this," she hands him the potion, "and if you fail, you serve me for all eternity, but if you succeed, you're free. Sound like a deal?"

"Fair enough," he said, "but I got two questions for ya. A. What about me boys? An' B. What's tha catch?"

"No catch," she said, "fair is fair. As for your boys, if they help, then the deal extends to them as well."

"Sounds fair enough, you got yourself a deal."

Jareth laid next to Liz deep in thought. He was contemplating how he was to tell her his feelings. Even if he wasn't sure if what he felt was love or lust, she deserved to know the truth. She deserves to know how attractive she is and how much of a desire for her he has.

"Jareth?"

Her voice pulled him out of his reverie. "Yes?" He replied without breaking his gaze upon the sky.

"Is something wrong? You seem like you're far away and somewhere else right now."

"Tomorrow there will be no training. We are going for a stroll. I would like to show you something." He still did not look at her completely but flicked a glance at her from the corner of his eye.

"Okay," was her only reply.

They had still been looking up at the stars when she spoke. The moon was big and bright. It shone a silvery light over everything it looked upon. She wasn't looking at the stars any longer. She was looking at him. Her own thoughts were racing through her mind.

Unlike other people and those romance stories she'd occasioned to read, there was no animosity that bloomed from an unwanted attraction into one of the strongest loves of all time. There wasn't a slow and steady growth of love that was cultured or realized over time. No, between them was this awkward and unspoken thing without a name that was hidden away and dormant until now. Now that it was exposed, now that it was real, it was growing and growing fast. There was never any denial of the sexual tension between them, but with them both modest creatures, and filled with ether, which she had other theories on that topic to explore later, there was no acting on the temptations at all. Their nearness was expected, but she still fooled herself into thinking that she was merely a friend and they were taking it slow. She had believed that he was real as a young girl, formed a young girl's crush, then put him away as a young woman, now grown, but remained that in her dreams, where he was only real at night, she would maintain that crush. It was never a real love, or so she thought, but now that she is overwhelmed by the senses she once put away and thought as childish, she is beginning to doubt its falsehood.

There was one thing about this moment, however. If she were to be completely honest with herself in this moment, she would have to say that no friend feels the way she feels about this man, but she was determined not to be broken. After all, there were many men in her life that never took her seriously, and she wasn't about to be a Fae's fool, even if she was fae herself. Then again, there was something in his eyes, something that said that he was trustworthy. Even though he was full of mischief, which she absolutely adored….. Her thoughts broke off. She adored something about him. Could it be that she adored _him_? Was he really worth the risk? Never before had Jareth wooed a woman just to use her for something. She had to realize this. Even though he was full of mischief, she adored him because he was honest about who he was. _"Tomorrow, I am letting go of my past pain and giving into my feelings for him. I can't live trapped forever. I might get hurt, and I might not, but I'm not going to wait around forever hoping that I won't. Tomorrow, I start the path to finding out,"_ she thought with determination.

Jareth was interrupted by her question, which he promptly answered, but then continued to allow his thoughts to run wild like a herd of horses. The more he thought, the more that realization dawned on him. Yes, he had been sexually attracted to the beautiful specimen that now lies next to him under the moonlit sky.

As he watched the trees dance back and forth blocking his view of the stars and moon, he thought about what it would be like to dance with her. He knew it went so much deeper than lust. He had watched her as a child. Then, it was only intrigue, someone to watch to pass the time. He had sensed the connection to the Ether within her, but Tony never entered her room for him to see who her father was. This would have been a dead giveaway, even if he was now fat and old.

He watched as she grew into a woman and as she held onto her fantasies when no one else was looking. She justified often the pretending that she would do at the age of 20 years old when she thought no one would see her. She still called his name and professed the cruelty of Sarah against him. He listened as Liz also called her a foolish girl to be giving up such a prospect of a man. She vowed to always love him, but he broke inside a little when she also said that it wasn't real and it would never happen.

Since those days, and the fateful day that Virginia found her and their father in the park and came to the kingdoms, he had grown more and more attracted to her. He thought it was her fae beauty at first, but none of the fae ladies had ever sparked his attention before. Then he tried to reason it on her being a woman alone with him and his manly temptations, but he found himself thinking more of her as a personality and a queen for his kingdom than just a bed fellow.

Queen. He thought of it again. He wanted her to be queen. Isn't it why he was contemplating testing their love in the Labyrinth? One false move, or a love that isn't strong enough and they both die. If she didn't love him, she could die; and the thought of her death was too much to bear. Yes, he realized that he loved her. " _Tomorrow,"_ he thought, _"is settled. I will tell her how much I love her."_

Soon, they both fell into a deep sleep that took them into dreams of love and laughter with one another. Yes, even the Goblin King slept that night. Neither of them realized how connected they were. They dreamt the same dream and hadn't a clue. They dreamt a dream of dancing, laughing, and kissing one another. To be there and watch them sleeping is to see them lying on the ground, Liz on her pallet and Jareth a few feet away on the cold hard ground, with arcs of Ether flying all around. A unifying process of the heart and mind had begun that even the great Jareth hadn't learned of, but someone else was watching too. He sent scouts back to the old woman to get tips on how to beat them with this new development. So, he decided to wait until his scout returned, and when he did, he would strike.

Come morning light, the two sleeping fae stirred from the ground and cleared their campsite. Jareth turned toward Liz and took her by the hand. It was a knowing look in her eye that told him that no words were needed. She didn't know where he was taking her, but from their conversation last night, she knew that this "walk", wherever it was, was going to be both important and changing.

Without a sound or a word, they were instantly transported to a grand ballroom. He didn't want to show her everything, but he knew that she had been dreaming of dancing with him, as he had been dreaming of the same with her.

"This is your castle isn't it?" She asked with dreamy eyes turned up towards him. The excitement in her voice nearly broke it.

"Yes." He took a minute to take in her facial expressions as she wondered at the gorgeously decorated room. It was draped in beautiful purple drapes and vibrant tapestries hung on the wall. The floors were a white marble with purple veins and purple tiles of almost a negative to the rest of the flooring. From the ceiling hung five chandeliers. Four of them were smaller and hung towards the corners of the immensely high ceiling of the room, while the center one, which was the largest, hung lower and threatened to consume the space in which it hung. It was contrary to his personality, but he had created it just for her. Originally the room was used for the goblins to have a place to run amok and not break things, but now that he was hoping to have a Queen at his side, he'd wanted to create a place that she could entertain guests and be happy. At long last, he turned her around and held out his right hand to her with his left behind his back. "May I have this dance, Elizabeth?"

"Yes," she replied, as her voice became even more shaky. She tried to hide the emotions stirring deep inside. Just the way that he had said her name was enough to make her want to swoon, but she knew she couldn't, not in front of him. She immediately recognized that with all of the blacks and browns, he probably wouldn't have ever chosen these colors and grandeur for himself. No, he had created this room's splendor in her favorite colors. That means it was decorated just for her. How could she refuse him? She wouldn't have anyway, but how could she refuse, even if she had wanted to?

Liz gave him her hand. He took her by the waist and placed her right hand on his left shoulder. Together they swooped around the dance floor with only his voice as the music. It wasn't until she began to sing with him, after some time of dancing, that he was completely succumb to the emotions within himself. If he wasn't resolved to love her before, he was certainly ready to do so now. No voice like that should have ever been hidden. He wondered how she managed to keep him from ever hearing her sing.

She could tell by the look on his face that he was in shock. He was grinning ear to ear like the Cheshire Cat and had picked up the pace of dancing ever so slightly. She immediately blushed and nearly pulled away from him. She was so embarrassed. She hid her face in his shoulder. Jareth stopped dancing and looked at her with interest.

"Why did you stop?"

"I've never sung in front of people before, I didn't think it sounded good, but I was having so much fun that I couldn't help myself," she said.

"Never stop singing," he said. "It was the most beautiful sound I have ever heard. You may well rival me in music." His voice was somber and soft. He hoped that she heard his sincerity that came from the bottom of his heart.

She did. She looked up at him with knowing eyes and smiled. She could feel tears of joy begin to prickle at her eyes, but she blinked them back.

"How ever did you manage to hide such a talent from me?"

She laughed a little and said, "I don't know. I guess since I sing in the shower all the time…," her voice trailed off and she blushed again.

That explains a lot. He would never deign to impugn a woman's honor by intruding on her bathing practices. When he would see her enter the bathroom, he would leave and come back an hour or two later. That always gave her time to dress and ready herself for bed.

The two stood there looking at each other. They were so close that their chests nearly were touching. She was holding onto him by the shoulders and he had both of his hands now on her waist, but he raised one of them to touch her face. Slowly he began to lower his mouth to her lips, but as he did, one of the goblins came tumbling into the ballroom claiming that he had important news.

 _Insufferable creatures_ he thought, exasperated. _If I get my hands on him_ …. He didn't finish the thought. He just stood there glaring at the little stumpy goblin with the oversized helmet and little brown shoes in front of him.

"Uuuuuuuuh, Your Highness, …" said the goblin.

Jareth said nothing. He intensified his gaze upon the creature. When it saw reason and left the room, Jareth wasted no time. He quickly grabbed Liz into a tight hold and whisked them away to the kingdoms they had previously been in. Now back at the campsite, they might have some privacy.

For a minute this was true, but then it was over.

"Well, well, well," said Brody, "Look who's finally returned. It's the little lady and her magical body guard!"

He leaned over to the men and whispered to them, "You know what to do. Don't let them fight side by side. Keep 'em separated."

They nodded in affirmation and leapt upon the two with vigor and rage. One of the largest, wielding a heavy hammer, ran right for Jareth and Liz and jumped over the camp fire. In defense they rolled forward to the ground and away from each other. Brody's eyes lit up with delight, it was a success!

It wasn't just Brody's revenge he was fighting for, but it was all he could think about. The theft of his magical bow and the girl that got away from him aggravated him for sure. But it was the fae that was standing next to her, and her obvious lover of some sort, that set his heart on vengeance and his eyes seeing red. He lunged forward with his eyes only on one man. The fae.

He raced toward Jareth with ferocity and power. He was confident that if he could only scratch him somewhere, then he had the fight. Jareth moved around him with fluidity and ease. He barely had to break a sweat. It was hard not to keep the proud smirk from his lips as he fought, and the more he smirked at Brody, the more angrily Brody fought.

"Jareth, Be careful! Their blades are poisoned with some kind of fae poison!"

They both turned to look over at where the shout came from. Jareth heeded the warning with careful intention, but when he looked back at Brody, it was he who was smiling the largest.

Brody knew for sure that he had them now. He fought harder, prouder, and more virulently against the Fae. He wouldn't lose to this man a second time. He was more alert than ever. With his men out numbering the woman and with all of his focus on Jareth, it wouldn't be long before they had the fight won and the both of them dead.

Their blades clashed and clanged with the sound of battle. Swing after swing and blow by blow they met blade for blade. Not once could Brody land a blow to Jareth's skin. Suddenly he looked around and noticed that the brute of a man with the hammer was unconscious on the ground and the three other men that followed him into battle were missing, with their swords in the fire.

Jareth took advantage of the distraction and landed a punch directly to his face. That knocked him down to the ground and left him dazed but not unconscious. Brody listened carefully to the conversation while he gained his wits about himself.

"They had some kind of poison. I was scratched, but I was able to push out the poison and heal the cut. I'll be ok."

"Where did you send the men?" Jareth asked.

She laughed a little, "The Bog." She paused a moment and said, "You can do with them what you want, but the new guard dog you placed there has them under lock and key with Ludo and Sir Didymus."

Jareth smiled at her, and gave her a look of satisfaction. Then, in one swift movement, he took Liz by the arm and thrust her behind him. It was almost too late. He had seen Brody get up from the ground and run towards them, sword in hand. Brody had the sword in a backwards grip and he lunged forward. Jareth looked down in shock and Liz shouted Jareth's name.

Jareth was determined to best that spineless twit for good this time, though he knew that Liz would be disappointed if he'd killed him. He thought that he could at least have some fun in the meantime.

He danced around the bandit with ease and grace, moving like liquid gossamer around his opponent. It was almost too easy. He had to stop himself from outright smiling with pleasure. It gave him great satisfaction to be defending the woman he loves from the same bandit that tried to steal her honor, especially since he couldn't stop her first attacker from doing the same.

He heard the warning about the poison escape Liz's lips and he acknowledged with sincerity. If it was the poison that he thought it was, it would steal the life from a fae in a matter of hours. He would have to be careful, there could be no mistakes. His smirk left and his focus sharpened.

Round and round they went, battling for what seemed like ages, but then the bandit made a mistake. He looked over at the fight next to them and realized there were no opponents. That was when Jareth made his move. He reached back and punched the bandit in his face as hard as he could without killing him. It was just enough to knock him back onto the ground into a dazed stupor.

Liz had done well, although she had given him some headaches in the Bog of Eternal Stench to deal with later. He was impressed, though, that she was able to make such quick decisions with mercy and grace in the heat of battle. He thought for a minute that she would make a great queen. That's when he saw the bandit get up, and just in the nick of time he was able to shove Liz behind himself.

"Ugh!" He exclaimed at the pain of the sword.

She was outnumbered four to one. It should have counted more like six to one because the brute was like fighting three extra men. On instinct, she sent a shock wave in the brute's direction and he went flying into the tree nearest him. He hit his head and it knocked him out cold.

The remaining three men fought with fear and trembling as she easily maneuvered her way in and out of the flailing of swords. One of them caught her arm. She winced at the pain of the cut and immediately felt a little light headed. She used her abilities to push all of the poison out of the cut before it soaked into her blood stream and healed the wound in mid combat.

She shouted a warning out to Jareth before she parried the next attack. One, two, then three, she disarmed all of the men and threw their weapons into the fire.

"I won't kill you, it's not my style, but I can't say the same for him when he gets his hands on you." She said it as she summoned a crystal ball into her hand.

She threw the ball down at their feet and they were instantly transmitted to the Bog of Eternal Stench. She looked around the scene for a minute surveying the damage and the fight. It was time to rest. She needed to catch her breath.

She hadn't seen how, but Jareth had knocked out the bandit leader and she walked over to him to tell him more about the poison and how she had banished the bandits to the Bog. Jareth was looking at her with a gleam in his eyes, when suddenly, he took her by the arm and jerked her behind him. She looked up from around his shoulder to see the bandit leader thrusting towards them with his sword. Jareth was too late.

The sword went completely through Jareth and partially into her. When the bandit withdrew his weapon, Jareth crumpled to the ground in a heap.

"Jareth!" Liz screamed as she looked up at the bandit. "NOOOOOOOO!"

Brody backed away from the couple slowly with fear and trembling in his whole body. He dropped his poisoned sword and stumbled to the ground. At the sound of her scream, the ground shook and the sky rumbled. There was a hot burning fire in her eyes that threatened to consume him from ten feet away. For the first time in his life, he regretted what he had done and who he had messed with.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

Liz got up from Jareth's side and stalked over to Brody holding the burning gaze in her eyes. She took him by the throat and lifted him high into the air. Pinning him against a tree, she glared death into his eyes. Brody begged for mercy, and Liz couldn't make herself kill him no matter how badly she wanted to.

Suddenly her eyes softened and she dropped Brody onto the ground. Lifting her hands over him a surge of magic flowed all round and through him. He didn't know what she had done, but by the look in her eyes, he wasn't going unpunished. She had cursed him somehow.

"What is your name, Bandit?"

"Name's Brody, miss. Wha'd you do ta me?"

"You are cursed with immortality. No one can kill you, and neither my death nor Jareth's will break the spell. No one can break the spell. You are bound to eternal life until you find true love. True love in any form, but pure true love. You must learn to be selfless and kind. You're going to be bound to me as my servant until my death, and after my death, until Jareth's death. Whoever you were enslaved to before, I have broken that bond. You are mine."

Brody couldn't respond. He was in shock. He had never thought of eternal life as a punishment, but with knowing the torture that would follow if the merciful woman died and he was left to Jareth, he knew that he would soon wish for death. If he knew what was good for him, he'd help find the antidote fast.

"Miss, can I ask you somethin'?"

"You just did, now shut up so I can work."

She straddled Jareth's legs and lifted his shirt. If she worked quickly, it wouldn't be too late. Maybe she could get all the poison out before it hit his bloodstream. She summoned a crystal and mapped the poison in his body. Good, she thought, it hasn't spread yet. Using the same crystal she pulled all of the poison from Jareth's wound and it was absorbed into the ball. She threw the orb into the fire and began work at healing his cut.

Slowly she healed the open cut from back to front, careful not to make a mistake or miss anything vital. When she was finished, it was clear that the poison had begun to work on her, but she continued to fight for her love's safety and wellness.

"Brody, we need to find my sister."

"Miss," he began to interject but was interrupted.

"Elizabeth. My name is Elizabeth."

"Mistress Elizabeth, you're not strong enough. Tha poison…," his voice trailed off.

"I am well aware of what I am capable of, but the sooner I find my sister and Wolf, I can ask him what the heck it was we were poisoned with and get an antidote."

Without further interruptions and an nod of acknowledgement, Brody stepped back away from Liz. She had transformed into a giant owl almost the size of a dragon. He was in awe for a minute, but then when she looked at him, and then at her back, he understood what to do. Jareth was lifted onto her back with Brody and the three of them set out into the sky to find the wandering group of outsiders.

Liz flew high and fast, but with her owl eyes, she was able to see far and clearly, for a time. That is, until her vision began to fail. She could feel herself losing strength rapidly. She needed to find them as soon as possible. That's when she saw a fire in the distance. Taking a closer look, the campsite that was near a clearing in the forest was indeed that of her sister and Wolf. She landed gently in the clearing and lowered a wing so that Brody could slide down with Jareth.

Jareth woke up halfway through the flight. He could feel the wind rushing past his face and blowing his hair. Brody motioned to him to remain still and Jareth, too weak to fight, wondered if he was being taken to his death.

When they landed, it was even more confusing to Jareth why this man who tried to kill him just moments before was now helping him to the camp of his future father in law and sister in law. He was sure that he was either dreaming or dead.

He turned around to look at the massive beast that had taken them to the place they were and realization dawned on him as his beloved Liz emerged from the shrinking owl form. He understood then that Liz certainly would not have killed the bandit, so this must be some kind of punishment for him. Does she really think that she can trust him? He thought to himself as he tried to make sense of all that was going on around him.

Once they all got to the camp, everyone had questions, but Liz held up her hand and refused to answer any until she got some rest. Jareth, above the rest, knew that he would certainly have questions for her the next day, but for now, he allowed her to have the control.

The next morning, Jareth was feeling much better and able to move about on his own. He changed his clothes and looked around the camp at all of the people. Wolf stared at Virginia longingly as she slept, Tony was drooling on himself and slightly snoring, Brody sat against a tree staring at his feet looking as though he was contemplating something, and Liz…..

Liz was more pale than usual. She was olive complected, but more fair than others like her, and today, even more so.

"You!" He pointed at Brody. "Why did she let you live?"

"She cursed me, your majesty. I'm her slave till she dies, then I go ta you."

He didn't respond. He only looked at him in anger and contemplation. He turned his attention to the beautiful woman who was now stirring from her sleep. She had much to explain to him.

She caught Jareth's eyes on her, and knew the look that he gave. She glanced back to signal him to be patient as she made room for them to have some time alone.

"Wolf," she said, we were poisoned with some kind of fae injuring potion. Is there any antidote to it?"

Wolf's ears perked up, "Yeah, but I don't know where to find it. It comes from a very rare blue and white flower. Maybe if you could find some of that you could make some."

Jareth's eyes were even more filled with knowing than before. "They call it Fae's Mortality. It grows here?"

"Sure, but I don't know where to find it," said Wolf.

"Wolf, do you think you and Brody could find some?" Liz spoke up.

"Miss Elizabeth, the witch I got it from had a garden. Maybe it's there."

"Go. Find it and come back here."

By then, Virginia was beginning to wake up. She wore a look of confusion on her face.

"Where are they going?" She asked.

"To get something I need. Why don't you and Dad go try to find us some more firewood and some breakfast?"

"Sure," she said with a quizzical brow. She didn't know that she trusted the look on her sister's face entirely. She looked awfully pale and weak.

Liz turned to walk back toward Jareth. She turned away from him for a moment to make sure everyone was gone, but fainted right into Jareth's arms. When she collapsed, he knew that she wasn't well, and fire raged within him. Slowly, he lowered her to the ground and began his search for the wound that had her fading.

"Brody got me, too. His sword went through you and into me."

"Why didn't you tell me you were hurt?"

"What could you have done, Jareth? You were unconscious and unable to help me."

"You shouldn't have had to deal with this on your own."

"If you die, I die. I can't live without you. And I don't want to. I knew that if I didn't save at least one of us, then we would both suffer. But I figured that you were the better choice."

"Why? Why am I more important than you?"

She didn't answer him. She couldn't right now. If she told him how much she loved him, she thought that he might give her more excuses that didn't make sense. There was nothing that he could do. Nothing better that could have been done. She knew she made the right choice, and that he would have done the same thing in her place. Finally she spoke.

"You would have done the same thing for me," she said as she passed out cold.

Fuming with anger and hurt, he immediately set to work trying to find a way to pull the poison from her blood by magic. He was afraid. For the first time in a long time, he was afraid, and that was the best way to describe the anger and hurt inside. Suddenly, things didn't revolve around him or the pain in his own heart. He cared for someone else. It wasn't all that different this time he nursed her back to health than when she had been attacked that day, but this time, they were together. She knew who he was. She wanted to be with him, she'd said as much. What was she really saying when she said that she wouldn't live without him? Could she really love him as much as he loved her? No matter how hard he tried to focus himself on her healing, which was moving slowly without that flower, his mind kept coming back to his fear of losing her and her confession of wanting to be with him.

It wasn't long until Wolf and Brody returned. He had in his hand a bundle of blue and white flowers that were known to restore a fae's strength and promote healing. Fae's Mortality wasn't lethal by itself. In fact, the flower didn't get it's name from taking the life from a fae, but because it was known to restore to them their power after being mortally wounded. It was a healing herb, but when mixed with another kind of herb, it became the life stealing force of death that had infected Elizabeth and Jareth.

Quickly Wolf ran over to Jareth and offered the flower. Jareth had instructed that some of it be made into a paste while the rest be made into a tonic for her to drink. One individual flower, she would have to eat raw. Confused, Wolf and Brody set to work on the instructions that Jareth issued. Then he tried to wake his sleeping beauty from her death's sleep.

"Elizabeth," his voice was smooth and calm, but full of sincerity.

"Mmmm," she grunted out as she tried to force herself awake.

She had been asleep for a few hours while they were gone, and Jareth had been trying to at least stop the bleeding that was apparently still constant. More than the poison, the loss of blood was taking hold of her life bit by bit forcing her down the dark road to oblivion.

"You need to wake up. I need you to eat this."

"Oh," she said, still trying to pry her eyelids apart mentally, "What is it? Is it that flower?"

"Yes," he said while pulling in one motion the petals off of the bud.

She sat up onto his knees and opened her mouth as he fed her one petal at a time. He tried not to smirk as she grimaced at the disgusting flavor filling her mouth.

"If I weren't about to die, I'd spit this crap out," she said, her face still scrunched and trying not to gag.

Jareth just held her as she chewed, watching to see if she regained her strength at all. When it seemed as though the color began to fill her face again and the bleeding stopped, his eyes filled with relief.

"I'm tired, Jareth. I need some rest."

"Sleep," was all he could say. He had trouble hiding his emotions, which were usually cool and collected, but in this moment were scattered and chaotic. No one had a hold of him like she did. He hoped that he had a hold on her heart as well.

Tony and Virginia slowly found their way back to the camp. They had found a grove of berries and picked all that they could carry. They had hoped that it would be enough for the entire group to feast on.

Virginia was lost in thought, though. The entire time that they had been out there searching for food, her mind was elsewhere. The thought of losing her sister suddenly came to mind. She couldn't bear the thought.

"No, No!" She had said out loud. Then she suddenly looked around to see if anyone had heard her. It didn't appear that anyone had.

Her father asked her if she was alright, to which she just nodded. Even the oblivious Tony had noticed that she had something on her mind.

"I'm just worried about Liz. She didn't look well when we left."

"I know. I think she got hurt. You know, if she had listened to me and stayed away from that fae, that wouldn't have happened."

"Oh _DAD_ ," Virginia said exasperated, "Liz isn't like us. You made her what she is. You know what I think? I think she's just like what you would have been if you hadn't met mom."

The statement was more truth than either of them would have dared to admit. That's why Tony didn't respond. He just stood there looking at his youngest daughter with both pride at her determination and disappointment that she hadn't agreed with him. He just didn't want to let go of either of his children. After Christine had left, his girls were all he had to live for. And he would have done anything for them, but he couldn't let them go, just not yet.

Once they arrived and shared their findings with the group, Brody set out to inspect the fruit and distribute it to everyone equally. He otherwise sat in silence most of the time, trying to work out his sentence in quiet obedience.

Then finally, Liz stirred. After everyone had eaten and the camp was packed, all that they had been waiting on was for her to open her eyes. Not wanting to leave until they were sure she was going to pull through, everyone's ears and eyes were now on Liz.

"Ugh," she groaned, "how long was I out for?"

"Just a few more hours. The day is only shortly past midday," came Jareth's reply.

"I feel like I have been out for weeks, and yet I could sleep some more."

"You are very ill at the moment, yet, and still need rest. What do you say to us staying behind while your family goes ahead without us?"

"Oh," she hadn't thought about it, but that _did_ sound appealing to her now, "yeah. That's a good idea. Once I get my strength back, we'll have no problem catching up. You guys go on ahead without me."

"Whatta 'bout me?" Brody chimed in, but quietly so that no one else could hear.

"The moon's almost full. Keep an eye on Wolf for me, would you?" She also kept her voice low. She didn't want Ginny to know how vicious a half-wolf could be unguarded during a full moon.

"Yes, ma'am," was all he could muster to reply. He would never admit to anyone how he wished she would just bark an order at him. The way that she treated him was more of a friend than an immortal slave. He couldn't hide behind hatred at what she was doing. He couldn't find a reason to dislike her. Worse yet, he could't hide away from the feelings of regret and guilt that shot pangs into his heart each time she was kind or asked "please".

Without further ado, the campers finished gathering their things and moved out. They were still a day away from the Peep Village by Brody and Wolf's estimate, and they would need to make another camp as they got closer. Now that he had his bow returned to him by his mistress, he would finally get them proper meals to eat, Brody thought.

It wasn't long before Liz had fainted again under the stress of trying to stay awake, but Jareth knew that she needed her rest. Each time that she was out, he made it a point to spread the paste all over her wound and clean it. It was tedious work, tending to a wound the mortal way, but unfortunately, it needed to be done.

When the camp had been completely vacated for all but Jareth and Liz, Jareth pulled up the shirt she was wearing to reveal the cut deep in her lower abdomen. Foolish woman, he thought with both pain and anger, the cut that had gone untended for so long could have damaged her uterus, making it difficult for them to ever bear children. If he was lucky, she would be fine, but all that depended on whether or not she waited too long to be healed.

He worked at the wound once more and then gave her a dress that would be far more comfortable than pants when dealing with the wound. He almost didn't, because of the inappropriateness of lifting a dress rather than merely a shirt, but when he thought of how the pants would have to be pulled down over the wound, he didn't think that the scraping motion would be much appreciated. Besides, he thought, why couldn't he cover her legs with a blanket?

The change made her stir a little, but she didn't completely awaken. She smiled in her sleep and reached for his hand. When she did, images of her dreams filled his mind.

 _They were in the ballroom again. They were dancing, but this time, it was her voice that filled the air. There was a change in her, a confidence that beamed through her, causing all of her inhibitions to dissipate. She danced with grace and smiled brightly. She looked at him with longing and passion and the two of them shared a tender kiss._

 _The images shifted to the two of them laying side by side in a great big bed._ He recognized it as his own. _They were snuggled up next to each other and she was smiling again, her hair was a crumpled tangled mess above her head on the pillow. There was a ring sparking on her left hand as she reached out and touched his arm that was covering her shoulders._

 _Once more the dreams changed. This time they were sitting in the throne room watching and laughing as the goblins made fools of themselves. He wasn't sure what the celebration was, until two young fae came barreling through the throne room chasing the goblins out on the backs of other goblins. With sticks, the twin boys played at sword fighting from goblin back._ The scene made him laugh both in the dream alongside his wonderful wife and in reality.

He gasped as he let go of her hand. He didn't realize that not only could she see dreams and memories, but she was also able to share them with others. He wondered if she knew this. She was so beautiful when she slept. Honestly, she was beautiful all of the time, but when she slept, it seemed that nothing of the world had ever touched her in a negative light. She was pure, innocent, and lovely in her sleep. He only hoped that she would recover and that those beautiful dreams would come true.

At long last, she finally opened her eyes. Days had passed. Jareth had fully regained his own strength, and in her moments when she was stirring but not completely awake, he had been feeding her the liquid made from the Fae's Mortality. She slowly was healing both inside and out, but now it was time to see if she had her strength back enough to use magic.

"Good morning, love."

"Hey," she said almost drawing out the word into a yawn.

She stretched and tried to sit up, but smarted at the pain. Grateful that she was in a dress rather than the pants that would have pressed into the scar that now perforated her abdomen, she smiled through the pain.

"Thank you," she said looking down and motioning to the dress.

"You like it?"

"I do," was her only reply.

"We have much to talk about, when you're ready."

"As long as we don't talk about this," she said.

"Oh, really?" He said with a sarcastic tone in his voice.

" You would have done the same thing, Jareth. I am not apologizing for what I did. I made the right choice. I can't help the consequences, but I did what I did because I….," she stopped.

His eyebrows rose high on his face and his cocky smirk returned. He had thought that he'd be angry with her for her foolish choices, but now he sees that there was no swaying this woman whose stubbornness was equal to his own. He realized, too, that she was right. If it were the other way around, this woman would have been reading him his own "right act". One more thing came to mind, and that was how grateful he was to see her with some semblance of her old self sparkling in her eyes.

"Can you stand?" He didn't pressure her to finish the statement, but he did want her to walk around and get some exercise.

"I think so, but give me some time."

Warily, she took her time to rise to her feet. Again, she winced from the pain, but knew that that would eventually subside if she could just move around a bit. Once to her feet, she took the arm offered to her and they left the campsite and strolled around in the clearing. She almost wished that it had been the castle beyond the Goblin City again.

As if to read her thoughts, Jareth stopped and turned to look at her.

"I suppose you want another tour of my castle?" He asked it with that same smirk turning up the corners of his mouth.

" I was hoping for that, yes," she said smiling.

Within seconds, she was whisked away to the castle and they were walking around in a grand corridor that seemed to have no end. The hall was so long that the door was minuscule in scale at the end of it. They walked along in silence. It seemed something that they often did. After so many years of imaginary conversations, how does one proceed in a real one about real emotions?

"Thank you, Jareth. I know better than you think the reason why you were so angry with me for not healing myself. I could sense your …..," eyeing him carefully, she chose the right word, "concern."

Jareth stopped, took her by the arms and backed her gently against the wall.

"It was torture for me to have to face the possibility of losing you." His eyes were intense and full of emotion. If he didn't kiss her right then, she was sure that he would try again soon. Perhaps he would have tried again in that moment, but the last time they were at the castle, they had been interrupted by the goblins, then again by Brody in the forest.

"Jareth, I…..," she didn't finish her statement. His mouth closed in on hers in a tender embrace that, though it was only seconds long, felt as though she'd been floating on clouds for a lifetime.

Her eyes were still closed and she held her face still upturned towards him with her lips slightly parted. She didn't speak, but even with her eyes shut, she held a look of both amazement and bewilderment. He wasn't sure what was going through her mind.

"More," she whispered.

So, he obliged her. No, he rewarded her. With another tender kiss that lasted longer than the first one, he held her closer and rewarded her affection and her selflessness in saving his own life. When the second kiss had ended, her eyes flew open. There was a storm that threatened to break loose inside the violet crystalline orbs.

"More," she demanded. There was a desperation in her eyes that told him she was searching for something. But what? Without hesitation, he lowered his mouth down on hers and deepened the kiss. He held her so closely that it was as though she might fade from beneath his grasp. It was as if it would be the last time they would see each other ever again, but then it was like finding something that had been missing from life, too.

When they came up for air, the look in her eyes, and the tears, told him all that he needed to know. She didn't need to speak. The realization was there. She loved him. It was all over her face. Her tears streamed down her cheeks and he just held her tightly to him not wanting her to feel an ounce of pain.

"I can't believe it. That's what I've been missing," she said in awe. "I have waited my whole life to feel that, and you…., you gave it to me. It's always been there. I thought it was all in my head, in my imagination, but it's been real. It's always been real."

He pulled back away from her to look into her eyes again.

"You are a fae. Anything that you imagine becomes real. If you loved me in your dreams, then you loved me in reality. If you wanted me in your dreams, then you wanted me in reality. For a fae, the two are the same."

She held onto him. She had recently come to understand her love for him, but she didn't know that it went back all of those nine years of imagination. That realization hit her so hard that the emotions tumbled out of her all at once. She wept into his arms apologizing profusely for not believing in him.

"Elizabeth, are you alright?"

She dried her eyes and looked up at him with a smile on her face.

"I'm sorry. I'm just a little overcome by my emotions. Its finally all sinking in. I feel like I can be vulnerable with you."

He gave her a quizzical look and stared at her for a moment waiting for an explanation.

"It's all sinking in. The nine years that I pretended to be in love with a fictional Jareth the Goblin King and to become his queen, they really happened because I imagined them. I feel guilty for not believing in it all sooner, but it was hard to accept at first. But now. Now I feel like it all makes sense. I feel like I never had to fight for love, because it's always been there. You've always been there. Its freeing. Its refreshing. Its even amazing!"

He smiled at her with a knowing smile. He was relieved also. Finally someone came into his life the he didn't have to constantly chase down and try to convince to love him for all the good he can do. Someone who already loved him for who he is, was, and will be. Nothing to change. Nothing to fear. Nothing to hold back. They were free to be who they wanted to be, especially in each others' arms.

"It's time to go back. Your sister will be missing you."

She didn't want the moment to end. It saddened her to have to leave so soon, but before he could say anything else, she already transported them back to the kingdoms. He could sense that she was growing stronger. It wouldn't be long before she matured from her human mind into the full fae.

Back at the old campsite, the two of them sat down on the ground to talk. He knew that he would have to explain everything to her, and that it wasn't going to be easy. All she wanted was for the two of them to be together forever. He knew that she was aware of the curse and that she had a part in breaking it, but she didn't know what all that entailed. Now was the time to tell her everything. Once she agreed, there is no going back.

"What do you know of the curse over me, Liz?"

"That dad put it there and that whoever loves you will break it, why?"

"There's more to it than than."

"Like what?"

"My labyrinth."

"You're kidding me." She paused to search his facial expressions. "You're not kidding," she said with amazement. "How is that possible? I mean, isn't it _your_ labyrinth?"

"Yes, but the council will come to see through the tests and that the curse is broken fairly."

"Stupid, ugh…..," she paused to gather her words and steel her anger, "I wish this didn't have to happen. If my… father had just listened…"

She was interrupted by his hand on her face and soothing words, "Then I would not have had the opportunity to fall in love with you, nor you with me."

She was immediately comforted by this. She had a lot of questions, which she hoped that he would answer. It was going to be a long afternoon.

And so it was, that they spent the remainder of the evening discussing the series of events that were soon to take place. Jareth explained how the council members, or at least someone sent by them, would come and escort him to a holding cell of sorts while they prepared the labyrinth to respond specifically to Jareth and Elizabeth. He told her about how the council would prevent any contact between one another and between the labyrinth and the two of them. There could be no understanding of what lies in store. Everything that takes place must be proven to be deep and genuine.

She took a moment to soak it all in. It was a lot of information for one day. Confessing love, realizing the depth of it and the way that her magic had worked without her knowing, and finally the whole plan of the fae council. It made her head hurt to think about it. She needed to get up and walk around. Maybe practicing her magic more would help her to clear her mind.

She stood up and walked toward the clearing in the trees. Staring up at the nearly full moon, she changed her clothes into grey pants, similar to Jareth's but more like jeans, tall black boots with a high thin heel, a white peasant shirt with a leather corset vest and a deep purple cropped jacket, extremely similar to Jareth's tan one. She liked to dress like him. It made her feel like she belonged to him. She didn't really belong anywhere until he came along. It just felt right.

As he admired her look, and her taste, he walked over to her and put his arms around her waist. There they stood looking up at the moon for what seemed like hours. When she began to get tired, he created her a place by the fire so that she could stay warm, but he, himself, couldn't sleep. It was both anxiety and excitement that kept him awake that night. Most likely, it was the joy at knowing that they finally shared the secret feelings they had kept hidden for so long.

The morning light was not welcome to Elizabeth. She had wished that it would just go away, but she knew that she had to eventually get up and move forward with her day. Sooner or later, she would have to meet up with Ginny and the rest of the gang. She just couldn't let the moments slip that she'd finally gotten to have with Jareth. She knew that if she was patient, and if they succeeded at the Labyrinth, then they would have time for more moments like that later, but she still couldn't help but feel like she needed to make the most of it.

She sat up and stretched out. She was still wearing the outfit she had changed into the night before. When she looked for Jareth, he was standing by a tree watching the sun rise. She decided to stand with him in the moment and cleared the camp. To see it in that moment would have been to doubt that there was ever a camp there in the first place.

"Enjoying the sun rise, or deep in thought?" She asked as she stood nest to him and looked in the direction he was looking.

"Both."

He smiled and turned around to look her in the eye. The sun shining down on her through the trees made her look even more beautiful than she already was. He leaned in for a kiss, but his lips never made it to hers. They were interrupted in the blasted forest by someone else's voice. He thought to himself, _if it's that Brady again, I'll throw him in the oubliette!_

"Well, well, well, what do we have here? The Goblin King, and his little mortal pet!"

"I take it that that's one of the council's lackeys?" She asked.

Jareth spun around, not able to hide his incredulous mood from his face.

"Johnathan," he said, flatly, "They sent you."

He had a smug grin on his face as he replied, "I see you can't seem to stay away from those mortal women, Jareth. When will you ever learn?"

Elizabeth couldn't stop herself. She figured it would be considered inappropriate, but the fact that this less than intelligent person seemed to think she was mortal amused her.

"I am not a mortal," she said, "My father was Antony of Azrael."

"Fool who you want to, mortal," Johnathan replied in a egotistical tone, "but Jareth has to come away now."

"Jareth," she looked at him with pleading eyes, "please don't hurt him for being stupid."

Now it was Jareth's turn to laugh. His proud smile covering his features once again. He grabbed her arm as she turned to leave.

"Just where do you think you're going?"

She smiled a playful smile just before he sent his mouth crashing down on hers and watched as she transformed into a beautiful white owl and took flight. Johnathan stood there with his mouth agape until she flew past him scratching him on the back of the head. Jareth let another laugh out at the sight and went quietly with the set-down Johnathan back to the fae council.

Johnathan was still rubbing the back of his head when they arrived. Jareth was still laughing at him. He deserved it, the arrogant snob. It was about time that someone called him out on it. As far as Jareth was concerned, it gave him sheer joy that it came from his beloved Liz.

"Shut it, _your majesty_ ," Johnathan barked out, with his voice laced in indignation and sarcasm, "It isn't funny."

"On the contrary! I find it quite so!"

Johnathan groaned again as they approached the thrones of the High King and Queen of the Underground.

"Ah, I see you've come in good spirits, Jareth," said King Darion, "I was concerned you might protest the departure from your significant other."

"I began to, but then something wonderful happened, and now I find myself amused," said Jareth, still grinning from ear to ear.

"His stupid mortal woman has magic," Johnathan exclaimed. "And she claims to be a fae. The daughter of Antony of Azrael to be exact!"

Jareth turned on Johnathan and grabbed him by the lapel ready to spit fire at the insufferable twit when he was interrupted by King Darion.

"Is this true?"

"I only learned of her parentage in the months that I have been training her. It was when I saw her father for myself that I knew."

"Johnathan, leave us. And don't spy on the girl again."

"But I am your best scout, your majesty," Johnathan protested.

"Yes, and it also makes you the most arrogant. Do as I command. Leave the scouting of the young woman to me," he spoke with authority. No one in the room could have doubted the stern tone of his voice. In fact, others who were mere bystanders began to clear the room immediately. "Let us speak privately, Jareth."

When they had gone to a quiet corner to speak, Jareth was offered a chair and the pair sat down to discuss the matter at hand.

"Jareth, are you sure that you are in love with her? This would not be a venture to gain vengeance on her father or seek her throne?"

While Jareth knew the concern was genuine, he nearly balked at the line of questioning before him. He did realize what it would look like once the council heard of her lineage, but he didn't expect how offensive it would be to receive the questions he now faced.

"Elizabeth and I have had a unique connection that I could not explain for some years. Nine to be exact. I followed the connection in my ether to her and at first it was an innocent diversion. But as she grew, she began to fall in love with me through her dreams and imagination. It drew me in. I had intended to attempt acquainting myself with her under the false pretense of mortality, but there was an incident that changed it all. Since then, I have found myself growing more attached each day. Until a few months ago, she was only a mortal girl to me, who I contemplated abandoning to save myself, but when I saw her father, I found hope. I do love her no matter what it looks like. And she does love me."

"You're not at all concerned with your possible deaths, should either of you, or both of you fail?" Darion asked with genuine concern in his voice.

"No. I explained it in full to her. She will not be swayed. We are both prepared to take the risks involved."

"Good, then I will be the one to go to her and offer her the kingdom that is rightfully hers. It has sat here for all of this time under my care, but it's ruler has arisen from the dark. It can now be claimed if she wants it. Provided the testing goes smoothly, of course," Darion said.

With that Jareth was shown to his room. He was left alone to contemplate the situation at hand and wondered if Elizabeth was thinking of him as much as he was of her. _Such a pity, he thought, that I am not allowed to see her even in my crystals._

Liz flew on for an hour or so. That's all it took to catch up to her sister and the traveling troop. Deciding that it would be better, if not but for a moment, she swooped down and around Brody's head, landing on his shoulder. She could see that something was amiss. Virginia and Tony were walking up ahead of the rest of them, while Wolf was pacing and acting manic a little further behind. Brody brought up the tail of the line.

"What's going on," Liz thought into Brody's mind as she was still in owl form.

"Wolf's gettin' ready for his transformation. I think he's fightin' it. He's actin' a li'le strange."

She flew off of his shoulder and transformed into her usual self. Not wanting to stir a raucous in the village, she thought to make her appearance different from the former Goblin King style she had donned.

With merely a thought, she transformed her clothes into a beautiful purple dress in the medieval style. Her sleeves were long and belled out slightly at the wrist. The dress was full length and flowing. It looked to be made out of a satiny material. She wore simple black slippers and maintained the mimicked miniature amulet choker around her neck. For support, because she simply couldn't stand for her feminine parts to flop about as she viewed it as un-ladylike, she wore a corset beneath the dress. It was still a bit uncomfortable against her still healing wound, but bearable.

"Nice," Brody said with genuine impression marking his face.

"Thanks," was her reply. She was half smirking, half serious when she said it.

Brody could tell that there was something on her mind. If he wanted to maintain the kindness that followed him around when he was serving her, then he would keep up and stay alert. Nothing would happen to the Goblin King's future bride as long as he was around. There's no way he would allow himself to be the slave of the vengeful and unforgiving fae.

Liz saw Wolf pacing still, and looking for a way both mentally and physically to appease Ginny. He hastily picked a bouquet of flowers and tried to catch up to them.

"Wolf," Liz called out, "a word please."

"Huff Puff, this is my chance to make it right! Oooooh, what?"

"Look into my eyes," she said with a hypnotic calm.

As Wolf searched deep into the lavender spheres, he found a serenity he didn't know he could have. Was she using her magic on him? Suddenly, after a matter of seconds, she released him from whatever magic she had held him in, and he bounded away after his beloved Virginia.

"Wha'd ya do ta 'im?"

"I broke the binds the Evil Queen has on him and created a serenity within. When he sees a human, he won't be tempted to eat them. He will only crave livestock."

"That's smart, that is," Brody said, again impressed.

"Yup," was her only reply.

They walked together towards the village on as the caboose of the party. Liz kept her head off in Jareth land, and Brody kept his guard up wondering if the witch was following to make a second strike.

Virginia, in her desperation to track down the mirror, wandered from the road and across a field where three young women were keeping some sheep. Liz watched as the young shepherdesses approached and partook of a conversation, first with Wolf, then with Ginny. She noted the hint of jealousy in her sister's eyes at the frivolous display of flirtation. Liz smiled inwardly. She could see that though Virginia would never admit it, she was falling for Wolf. While Ginny's growing affection for Wolf was painfully clear to everyone but Ginny, what Liz couldn't understand was why that hard-headed young woman had to go about going home the hard way? Didn't her sister realize that she could send them home with a flick of the wrist? She found herself understanding Jareth's predicament with Sarah all the more sobering. It is what they want to do it on their own, and not seeing the potential help meant that they wanted her to remain silent about it. So, she did. She followed them silently waiting for a moment in which she would be needed.

"Did you see that?" Liz leaned in to whisper into her bodygaurd's ear.

"Which part?" he asked.

"The part where Ginny got jealous," she said with a smile as equal to Jareth's own mischievous grin.

"I'm oblivious," Brody replied, confused.

"Clearly," she said, "but pay more attention to the way that Ginny reacts to other women flirting with Wolf.

"I'll try, miss."

It wasn't until one of the young girls spoke to her that she even acknowledged them standing there.

"My! Who are you dressed all fancy?" The blonde who had flirted with Wolf shot her teasing remark straight at Liz.

Liz refused to engage the young flippity gibbit. She put on her sweetest smile and continued to walk in the direction of the rest of the party. When they were out of ear shot, Brody had to ask.

"Ain't you gonna do somin' about tha way she was talkin' to ya? All that power an' all?"

"Brody, unlike you, she is harmless. Let her have it."

Brody just nodded and shook his head. He didn't know if he would ever figure out women, let alone this one. One moment she was kind and polite, but then the next she could be as cold as ice. He already was terrified of her since the day he was cursed, but sometimes, she made him feel even more fear than that day.

Before long, the five companions found a place to stay at a nearby barn just on the outskirts of the Peep Village. Brody had been instructed by Elizabeth to keep a watch on Wolf, Virginia had offered Wolf a rabbit to hold and "cuddle", and they all stopped for some much-needed rest. Elizabeth wanted to try to keep an eye on Wolf as well. She made some excuse about getting some fresh air and transformed in the darkness into her owl form.

There was something about the way that Wolf was, at one minute, kind and compassionate to her sister, and then the next, a manic pile of sweat in the hay. She watched as Wolf lay sweating and panting holding the rabbit from the rafters. She knew that the rabbit was not for cuddling, but to be devoured the moment that Ginny was out of sight.

It might have been the screaming of a young shepherdess crying "wolf" or the way that Wolf snapped at Virginia to leave him alone. It was most likely both reasons that sent a spark of alarm into Elizabeth and the other two as well. Tony and Virginia decided to inspect the noise outside rather than the sudden outburst of Wolf. Elizabeth, however, stayed to watch him carefully.

Wolf continued to sweat and pant ferociously on the hay beneath the beam that Elizabeth was perched on long after her father and sister had left the barn. She was apprehensive of him, to say the very least, but feeling the growing hunger pains in her little stomach, she decided that she would go and find somewhere to eat and catch up with her sister later.

Brody was in a dark corner watching both her and Wolf, and after about a week of traveling with her, was beginning to understand the way she thought. She was far too kind to him, for someone who cursed him to an eternity of servitude. She treated him as an equal, even though she could crush him like a bug. He knew that he'd done too much wrong in his life to change, and almost resented her for cursing him to true love of any kind. At first it all seemed too cruel, but now… She reminded him of his beloved sister. She'd died the night his precious wife did when the Queen's men came for them. They burned the house down just from spite, and it was the moment he decided to get revenge on the land. But, she couldn't know that…, could she? It bothered him how kind she was. It made him feel like he stood a chance at breaking the curse. But for now, he was resolved to do this job and nothing more, he wouldn't let another kind woman drag him into a place where he would regret opening up to love again.

After being thoroughly disgusted with Wolf's gorging himself on the fluffy bunny that Virginia had given him, he set out to find Elizabeth. With Wolf back to his bouncy self, he didn't think he needed to keep such a close watch on him anymore. He found Elizabeth sitting at a table in the inn staring blankly into a mug of something. He knew that look. _Curse that woman_ , he thought with frustration laced with unwanted sympathy, _what the bleedin' mess is this? I can't get a moment's peace from all the heart strings!_ He walked to the table and sat down looking at her intently.

"You miss 'im," he said somberly.

"Yeah, I do," she replied. "And it's crazy, 'cause, I've only really been away from him for a few days here and there over the last nine years. At first, he was just a friend, but eventually, it grew into more. I can't really explain it," she trailed off.

"I get it," he said with knowing, "I used ta have a wife, ya know. She was pretty, like you. Kind like you, too. Killed by tha Queen, or, well, her li'le minions, anyway. It's wa' turned me to bandi'ry." _Bleedin' waste! He thought, Wha' in tha' worl' am I pourin' me heart out for?_

As if to read his mind, she smiled at him with the same kind smile she had been using on him since the morning after he'd tried to kill her and Jareth. He shook his head in confusion and proceeded to say something but was interrupted.

"I already forgave you," she said deliberately trying to cut off his words, "I saw it in your eyes. I knew that I couldn't do what you did, or I'd be no better. I felt your pain. It hurt my heart. So, I forgave you, but I wanted you to learn to live for others again. You may not want to right now, but one day, you'll change your mind."

"I dunno 'bout all that, _princess_ ," he said with a derogatory emphasis on the last word.

Elizabeth just smiled and shook her head. She knew that he meant to cover up his emotional turmoil with sarcasm and disdain, but it wasn't working very well. He also didn't know just how much of a princess that she really was.

About that time, Wolf came in and sat with Virginia and Tony, who had been in the inn since a little after Brody arrived. Another man entered as well. One that neither Brody, nor Elizabeth had seen before, but he still felt familiar to her somehow. Tony noticed him, too, but pretended not to. Liz had seen him glance up, saw Tony trace the man's line of sight to Elizabeth, and look down again. Her dad knew this man, and also knew not to interfere with his work, but Liz wondered if he could be trusted.

The man was dressed in regal attire. He was very elegant. His clothing didn't differ much from Jareth, excepting that he donned no leather. He was dressed in light blues and whites. He wore white pants and white boots that reminded her of Regency era clothing. His jacket wasn't far off from that same style, either. His vest was white, and his outer coat was light blue. His shirt, which was a peasant shirt, was a pale blue as well. His hair was black and slicked back, but he had the most beautiful blue eyes. They reminded her of Jareth's eyes. He was quite the sight to be seen, and in such a public vestibule, too. Not wanting to make a scene, Liz got up, motioned for Brody to follow, and met the man where he stood.

"Such a man so elegantly dressed is most likely not here for any of these people," she said in low tones and held out her hand for him to shake, "I am Elizabeth, who might you be?"

"King Dorian, I am indeed looking for you," he bowed low and kissed her hand, "Shall we speak in a more … private location?"

"Yes, but I must warn you, I need to bring my," she paused while she searched for the right word, "friend along with me."

"Very well, meet me at my castle?" He placed a hand to her forehead giving her an image for which to picture traveling to.

"Certainly, your majesty," she said in a respectful, but wary tone, and then followed him out of the door and around the corner where they disappeared into thin air.

Liz approached the grand castle still clinging to Brody's arm the way she had been when they first transported there. She was in too much awe at the splendor of the place to let go of him. He just stood there as bewildered as she, and neither of them could speak for a moment.

Brody went ahead of Liz to "make sure the path was safe to travel on." Liz was sure that he was just curious to see the inside for himself, and that he had needed some space from her kindness for a few moments. She allowed him to go as she slowly walked toward the castle taking in all of the sights and smells.

Jareth spotted her from an upper window. The window sat just above the main hall, which was coincidentally a larger throne room of sorts, and there were many windows along the balcony he occupied that overlooked different portions of the castle grounds. His window was just above a pond with a fountain in the center.

He had been sitting on the window sill looking out spinning the four crystals in his hand as he usually did when something occupied his thoughts, when he laid eyes on her. It wasn't coincidence either, that he noticed that she had not only a knack for changing her clothing at will, but that she had a very specific and different outfit for every single occasion she happened to be in. This time, she wore a dark blue medieval style dress, still with a corset, and it had laced sleeves down the sides of the sleeves with a laced back. Her waist donned a golden sash and her shoes were a simple sandal heel in the same golden color as the sash.

He was so surprised and taken aback at her beautiful appearance that he leaned over to get a better look. She was near the pond looking deep into it when it happened.

Sploosh! Plop! Plshhh! Sploop!

Liz let out a scream of shock at the water now dripping from her face and dress. She looked up at the window and saw a glimpse of blonde hair dipping behind the window's ledge. When she realized what had happened, she couldn't contain her laughter and let the uproar come soaring from her lips.

 _It was good to hear her voice again_ , he thought to himself. His accidental droppage of the crystals into the pond right at her feet had him worried, at first, that they would ping her in the head, then that she would be angry, but when he heard her laugh, it was all he could do to keep from laughing, himself.

When she had gathered her composure, she thought to herself about how difficult it would be not to run to him upon reaching the interior, then she thought about the meeting with King Dorian. She walked inside still wearing the smile on her face from the accident and greeted Brody and King Dorian with pleasantness and ease.

"Goodness," King Dorian exclaimed, "What's happened to you? You're all wet!"

"I think a mutual friend should have been warned of my arrival. He seemed to have dropped his crystals into the pond right at my feet resulting in my present state," she said with a giggle.

"I see," he replied. "Well, let's get right to business, shall we? As you may be aware, I am King Dorian, High King of the Underground and Lord of the Council. This was once your father's title, but he resigned it to me when he left the Underground. But it was not all he resigned. His kingdom, since he left, and left without an heir I might add, was left to me to govern until his return, or a suitable heir has been found. However, I have not claimed the land as my own, and no one else has desired it, either. And there has been no heir for it…..," he was interrupted by Brody.

"Lemme guess, until Miss Elizabeth showed up."

"Precisely," he responded.

"I knew that I was a princess in title only. Well, namely that my father was once a king, and that, by default, makes me a princess, but what are you saying, here? Do you want me to rule Azrael? Now?"

"No, at least not yet. You aren't ready yet, first you must mature into your Faedom, then you must pass the Trial and break the curse for Jareth. Since he has chosen you, I can't reinstate you to your throne only to risk you failing the Trial and losing your life. Then, Azrael would be left without a ruler yet again. No, I want to reinstate your title, and announce you as Princess of Azrael in name. I want to announce you as the ruler that _would_ take the throne as Queen should you pass the Trial."

"That way, if I fail for whatever reason, the people aren't losing their ruler, but they have hope of a returned ruler to the throne if I succeed?"

"Yes. Would you consent to this?" the king asked.

"I suppose I don't have anything to lose. Brody, what do you think?"

"Whatta ya askin' me for? It ain't my kingdom, is it?"

"I guess I'll do it then, your majesty," she replied after a brief moment of thought.

"Great! I will make the announcement as soon as possible. Please, you must stay for it," he pleaded with her.

There was something about him. Something all too familiar. She felt she knew him on a deeper and more personal level than he let on. She felt like there was something almost familial in his addresses to her, even though he coated everything in an air of sophistication and formality.

It wasn't but an hour or so, and the whole of the Underground was piled outside on the gorgeous garden grounds of Central Castle. The announcement sent the people into an excited uproar and they seemed even more in awe of the woman who'd just been announced as Princess of Azrael in title only. It almost made her feel uncomfortable to know that so many people were looking up to her before they had gotten a chance to know her. Then she thought, _perhaps it's that things don't really change much around here_. Even still, her heart raced in anticipation of the trials and experiences to come.

Once the meeting was over, Liz and Brody were preparing to say their goodbyes when a woman approached them. She wore a skimpy red dress that exposed too much of her body. It was a very familiar dress to Liz, so familiar that it caused her to have a flash back. _Iracemeth_ , she thought with shock and disgust. _How dare she show her face to me?_

"Ah, _princess_ ," she said with disdain and mock enthusiasm. "What does a little mortal like you offer to Azrael? Or, more specifically, what have you _done_ to gain that title?"

Liz just smiled a pretty smile at her and pretended that her words weren't insulting. She gave a polite curtsey before she replied.

"I am no mortal, Iracemeth. I am the daughter of Antony, the once-king of Azrael." She replied in her sweetest and kindest tone.

"Ah, a little half-wench who thinks she can usurp thrones that only partially belong to her," Iracemeth said, a little peeved and pleased by the fact that she couldn't get under her skin….yet.

"No, my lady. I am a full fae. My father gave to me all of his Ether when I was born. I have right to the throne, because I was born into it."

"Hm," she replied, "We'll see about that," she said as she walked off.

"Good day, Lady Iracemeth."

Brody stood there staring with wide eyes at the exchange that just took place. For the first time since his attempted murder of Liz, he actually thought that she was more terrifying the kinder she was. There was something so cold and yet so burning in her eyes, even though she was so genuinely kind and caring toward the cruel woman.

"Well done!" a voice came from behind them.

Liz and Brody turned around to see who made the remark.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to overhear," she said as she proceeded to walk away.

"Wait, what's your name?"

"Kaylie," she replied.

16


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4:

Brody was staring at her. His mouth was nearly agape. As if his reaction to her responses to Iracemeth weren't hilarious enough, Liz was finding his present state more persuading of the laughter bubbling deep insider her chest. She figured that she would need to intervene before Brody slobbered on himself.

"Nice to meet you, Kaylie. My name is Princess Elizabeth," she said while slightly giving a curtsey.

"Nice to meet you, too, Princess," she said shyly.

"This," she said, motioning her hand in his direction, "is Brody. You can call him my bodyguard, if you'd like a title for association. In reality, he's more of a friend to me." She gave a look to Brody that made him slightly confused.

"Name's Brody, nice ta meet ya'," he responded shaking himself out of the daze he was in.

"What brings you to the castle, if you don't mind my asking," asked Liz.

"Oh, I'm just here to see my cousin, John. He's a royal spy for King Dorian."

"Really? I do believe I have met him before. I must apologize, I don't think he likes me very much. And," she Elizabeth paused for a moment, "I have to confess I didn't really appreciate the tone he took with me at first. He kept calling me a human, so when I transformed into an owl and flew away, I scratched him on the back of the head," Liz stated while wincing. She didn't know how Kaylie would react to her behavior.

Unexpectedly, Kaylie held up her hand in an Aboveground behavior, a high five, and smiled. Liz was confused but returned the smile and the high five.

"He deserved it," she said. "I love my cousin, but sometimes he's a jerk," she paused, "and an idiot."

The both of them laughed for a few moments. Jareth was watching from the balcony again. He smiled at the exchange. It was good for them both that she had someone she could speak to. If she was serious in her love for him, passed the Trial, and accepted his offer, she would need someone in her life to get her through the transition from the old way of life into the new. It would be something of a culture shock, and friends during that time are critical for surviving it.

Brody barely spoke a word during the conversation. He was still enamored with Kaylie. From the moment that they turned to see her there, he noticed how he had never seen someone so beautiful in all of his life. She was fair. She was not as tall as other fae, or rather Jareth and Elizabeth, but she was gorgeous. She wore a light blue dress that covered her becomingly. It was cut off the shoulder on one side but had long sleeves on both sides. The swooping neckline was modest and showed the strength in her shoulders. The sleeves were tight but belled out at the elbow creating a lovely flowing look to her arms and hands and accentuated the muscles in her upper arms. She stood with a posture of a very strong woman, though she appeared to be small in stature. This told Brody not to be fooled by her appearance.

Her shoulder length wavy blonde hair was curly and swooped to the side. The floor length A-line dress almost sparkled. She looked to be in a more formal attire, but that seemed to be the way that the fae dressed around the palaces. He assumed it was a form of showing respect. She wore silver sandal- style heels that barely made their presence known from beneath the skirts of her dress. She seemed to be somewhat sheepish in attitude but gave an air of confidence that lurked beneath the surface.

He couldn't believe how beautiful she was. He also couldn't believe that anyone so beautiful would ever have anything to do with him, or that she would be deserving of such a lowering of status. She was a regal lady with a lot ahead of her, he felt, so when the conversation ended, and they parted ways, he left with Elizabeth and in complete silence resolved to never see her again. If he should see her, he would put all notions of her as anything more than friend far from his mind.

When they reached the others, much had taken place. Virginia was crying and Tony and Prince, who seemed to be released from his golden prison, (a prison Tony had accidentally put him into when he moronically stuck his finger in the golden fish and then "rescued" Prince from the troll trio), were skeptical about helping the Wolf regain his freedom. Apparently, they discovered, Wolf had been accused of murdering a young woman while they were away. There was pure chaos ensuing.

Liz didn't have time to ask questions, and when Virginia got up to go prepare for Wolf's trial, Liz used that time to escape to a safe place and try to learn what happened through magic. She asked that Brody stay hidden but keep an eye on the trial and inform her mentally if anything changed in the case. Swiftly and silently she ducked behind a building without being seen. She sent out her Ether to sense if she was being watched, then cast the vision ring. Waving her hand in the circle that Jareth had taught her to do, she saw what had happened.

 _Wolf heard a scream_. _He recognized it as the same voice that had been speaking to him the night before in the Baa Bar. Even though she was screaming, he never forgot a scent or a sound. He followed the sound to a nearby field. By the time he had gotten there, he was too late. The young girl had been murdered. The grandfather was approaching him, and he ran away._

" _Huff puff! They'll never believe it wasn't me! I'm gonna burn! Just like the gypsie said!" He was frantic and manic trying to find a way to escape the village._

 _The villagers closed in on him quickly. They cut him off just before he could run back into the Disenchanted Forest. They snatched him up by the arms and legs and hoisted him above their heads. The angry mob hurried back to town and imprisoned the half-wolf without a thought or asking a single question._

 _The vision shifted. It seemed to be a prologue to the previous vision. The girl was running away from the village upset and crying. She had straw and dirt on her boots and skirt. She was cornered by a man, but for some reason Liz couldn't see his face._ (She wondered why.) _The man grabbed the girl, Sally Peep, by the arm and she began to scream. He slit her throat from ear to ear._ (Liz nearly lost all of the contents of her stomach. She would fight to the death if she had to, but she never wanted to witness the death of another person.) _As she crumpled to the ground, he made careful work to imitate her being torn apart by a savage beast. Then he ran to the barn. The vision went black and the memory glass faded away._

Liz couldn't contain it anymore. She spewed her guts up on the ground. She was torn between anger and disgust, but she was certain she had to find a way to prove Wolf's innocence without exposing herself. To expose herself as fae would make the village think her a witch. Then, she would no longer be able to stay and help her sister make it back home or help her find true love. Without a thought she changed her filthy clothes and then transformed into an owl.

Flying into the court room, she perched up on a window sill. No one had noticed her. She could see that not only was this proceeding not going well at all, but Ginny was totally bombing in defending Wolf from these people. She still had not learned to meet the people where they were. She couldn't defend him as if she were at home, but that's exactly how she tried to defend him here. What was worse, her logic was worse than theirs was. _Poor, poor Wolf. Poor, poor_ _Ginny_ , she thought.

She silently passed her thoughts along to both Brody and Tony.

"What's happening, other than the total mockery of justice that's taking place," she said.

"Nothin' much, 'cept wha' you're seein' now," said Brody, also silently.

"I really think she believes he's innocent, Lizzy," interjected Tony.

"That's because he is. Brody, can you slip out without being noticed? Dad, you too." She flew off after she ushered in the command, not waiting for a reply.

"Of course," Brody replied anyway, even though she was nowhere to be seen.

"Meet me by the destroyed chicken coup," was all they heard after she had left.

Once they got to the coup, she refused to transform, and explained that the "trial" back there was reason enough. Without any more rebuttals or questions, she flew to the spot where Sally had been murdered.

"I couldn't see who killed her, but she was murdered here. There was another man here. He framed Wolf for his dirty work somehow. I don't know why I couldn't see who her killer was, but maybe Prince could sniff him out?" she asked hoping that she could convince the four-legged prince to help her find what she could not. Perhaps in his doing so, they could find evidence that she could not.

After some convincing of Prince to sniff out the area, he quickly darted off toward the barn. Mentally, Tony shot Liz a comment about being there the night before and hearing the threats that Wilf, the grandfather, had made. Liz took mental note of it and followed the group to the barn, still as an owl.

Upon arrival, Prince went straight to a pile of hay while the rest of the party, even Elizabeth stood around marveling at the destruction of the well and the barn as a whole. There was hay and wood everywhere. That seemed to be motive enough, and since Tony knew that it was the family farm, Liz would have to let him take the lead on this one.

"Dad," she said, now in her boots and jeans and looking her normal self, "You saw them the night before, we didn't. You have to save Wolf. You're the only one who can. Please."

"I know, I know," he said, but didn't waste time. He was already walking toward the town when the conversation started.

Liz transformed back into an owl and perched on Brody's shoulder. He followed the dog and the older man out of the barn and stayed a fair distance back in the village pretending to be one of the angry villagers.

Luckily, they got there just in time. Tony took the torch from Wilf's hand and began his explanation of the how Sally Peep was murdered. It wasn't until the crowd began to doubt his explanation that he smiled and responded with confidence.

"Where's your coat, Wilf? The one you were wearing at the contest?"

"I don' know what you're talking about," the old man said in an innocent sounding droll.

Tony whistled, and soon, Prince appeared with the blood-stained garment.

"She wrecked your well, didn't she, Wilf? So, you followed her up the hill and you killed her, didn't you? Because if you couldn't have the well, then nobody could!"

The whole town was in shock and horror. Wolf was released, and the old man took his place, cursed to die in the way he had framed for Wolf. The party traveled back to the hidden mirror in the barn, because Virginia and Tony hid it when Wolf had been arrested and were about to make a break for home when they realized that the mirror had been taken from their grasp yet again.

"Which way and how far?" was all Virginia could muster when the news came.

"Oh," the woman said, "It's not a journey you'd want to make on foot."

The kind woman sent for another of her sons, hitched the wagon to a horse, and filled the wagon with hay. They all climbed aboard for the one-week-long journey that would take place now. Liz wasn't thinking about the journey; her mind was lost on the now two weeks that had passed since she'd seen Jareth. Her heart ached so much it made her tired. She'd never been away from him for so long. He would always be back after a day or two, sometimes three, but for two weeks? It was all she could do to tell herself that absence makes the heart grow fonder.

She sat back on the hay and stared off into the distance. Slowly her eyes shut. She hoped to dream of Jareth. She hoped that dreaming of him would be enough to tide her over until they met again. Her dreams were what brought them together, and her dreams would hold them so.

As she slept, Tony asked Brody if Liz was going to be alright. He didn't feel comfortable talking about her, for many reasons, but thought that no one was safer to discuss it with than her father. Virginia was asleep as well, and unknowingly on Wolf's lap at that.

"Miss Elizabeth is jus' missin' tha master, tha's all. She loves him more than ya know. She nearly killed me coz a' wha' I did ta 'em. It's why I'm cursed this way."

Tony didn't say anything. He just looked at Brody with an accepting nod and nestled back to get some rest, himself. He could see that the little girl with the big imagination wasn't such a little girl anymore. He hated having to let her go but knew that the day would be coming. Not only would he have to let her risk her life, but if she survived, he may never see her again.

Liz was dreaming…

 _She saw Jareth. They were dancing at a ball. It was much like the first dream, but this time there was another woman there. Iracemeth. She couldn't forget that face or that dress even if she wanted to. She was clinging all over Jareth in a vulgar manner. She was kissing him, and he was kissing her back. Wicked laughter filled the air and their eyes were dark and smoky._

 _She called out to Iracemeth to stop messing with her dreams, but Iracemeth just vanished, still laughing evilly._

The anger burning inside of Elizabeth woke her from her sleep. She had been asleep for hours, because it was now night. She looked around the hay-filled wagon and saw that everyone was asleep. All except for Brody.

"You're still up?" she asked.

"I saw ya twitchin', so I thot I'd wait for ya ta wake up. If ya didn't I was gonna wake ya meself."

"Thanks, Brody. I really appreciate it. Iracemeth was interfering with my dreams. If it happens again, please wake me. You can rest now, I am fine."

With that, Brody snuggled down into the hay and fell fast asleep. Liz watched the stars pass over her head and wondered if Jareth was looking at the same stars she was.

Jareth spent his days pacing back and forth in either the balcony or his quarters. His quarters were the only place he could get some rest from Iracemeth. She was always prowling around him trying to get him to succumb to her as he had once done. He regretted every moment he had ever wasted with that woman. _What a vile creature_ , he thought.

He missed Elizabeth. Each day that passed was harder to get through. The temptation to see her, to go to her, or to speak to her somehow grew more and more with each day. However, for some reason the thought "absence makes the heart grow fonder" kept ringing out in his head. He often wondered when he heard it if it was his beloved Liz that instilled that line of thinking between them through her dreams.

Even though they had been separated, he could sense not only that she had been growing stronger with each passing day, but that she was troubled by more than their distances apart. He hoped that she would pay a visit to King Dorian again soon, because he longed to see if she had been sleeping well.

The journey to Kissing Town was long and tiresome. More than once they would have to stop to get some rest for their bottoms. Their valet was more than obliging, needing a rest for his own posterior. Once they arrived, they thanked their escort and were about to begin searching for the mirror when they were interrupted by a cupid.

The cupid gave some predictions to Virginia and showed them where to begin looking for the mirror, and they set to work quickly. Liz wanted to help them, but Tony wouldn't have it.

"You saw what they did to Wolf back there! What if that happens to you?" Tony cried exasperated and in a last-ditch effort to protect his daughter.

"Ugh!" she said and stormed off.

Brody followed after her. He understood both of their predicaments and positions. He could help Liz to calm down, and maybe get some rest.

"I need to do something, Brody. I can't just sit around waiting for Iracemeth to haunt my dreams with lies again!"

"No offense, Princess, but you need rest. Your father's jus' tryin' ta help ya stay safe, and you're jus' tryin' ta do sommin' helpful ta get away from tha nightmares. I get it. But I think ya need some rest."

"You're right, Brody. I mean, when you're right, you're right. I'll go find a quiet place to try to sleep, then I'll go deal with Iracemeth at King Dorian's castle."

She walked off, and he went with her to watch over her and protect her. He didn't want the huntsman coming after her while she slept, or worse, the one of the witch's spies. He knew that once she got some rest, she would be her normal self, and then she'd be ready to deal with anyone or anything that stood in her way.

Liz woke up from her sleep well rested and ready to go. She decided to go find her father and Ginny and let them know where she would be. When she did, she saw that her father sat at a bar drinking and looking completely dejected while talking to Prince. Virginia had gone on a date with Wolf, to which Liz thought, " _about time_." She settled for telling Tony.

"I am going to go see King Dorian, Dad. Iracemeth is haunting my dreams. If it weren't for the fact that I was so tired I didn't dream at all last night, I wouldn't have gotten any sleep at all this entire week!"

"Alright, honey. I love you," he said as she was leaving. "Hey!" he added, "Be careful!"

"Sure thing, Dad"

With that, she was gone into the other realm.

Liz showed up again on the doorstep of the magnificent castle that belongs to King Dorian. She had a look of determination on her face. Brody followed closely behind her. Her jaw was set, her features firm, Jareth could see from his perch that not only has she not been getting much sleep, but that she was here because someone was causing her lack of sleep, and she was ticked.

She marched into the castle with a ferocity that seemed to please the eyes of the object of her rage. Kaylie was standing in the center of the room next to her cousin and the pair turned to greet the prickly princess.

They had been standing there trying to figure out what it was that Iracemeth was so proud of. Iracemeth had been preening and prancing through the castle boasting about how Jareth would soon be hers again. That's when Kaylie decided to step in. She was trying to figure out what she had done to make her so much more arrogant and snobby than usual. That's when they saw her.

The castle doors slammed open and shut again. In walked Princess Elizabeth with a firm expression. She wore grey jeans that were tucked into her tall black boots. She donned a peasant shirt with a leather vest corset. She also wore the purple jacket that was identical in style to Jareth's. With her gloved hands she took her right and placed it over her abdomen and her left behind her back. With that she bowed to the three fae standing in the center of the grand hall.

"Good day, Kaylie, Johnathan," she paused to gather her composure and her nicest voice, "Iracemeth."

"Why, my darling, Princess Elizabeth, you look just awful! Have you not been sleeping well?" Iracemeth was thoroughly proud of her handiwork.

"Hm," Liz replied with a laugh on her voice, "It seems that I have a cat problem."

Kaylie sniggered at the comment. She caught on immediately to what Liz was trying to say. She replied promptly, "Have you figured out what to do about it?"

"I have, thank you, Kaylie," she said. "I plan on seeing King Dorian immediately. As soon as may be."

"I wonder, if you're as powerful as Jareth claims, that you don't just handle the little beast yourself?" Iracemeth spat.

"Yes, it would seem that I would need permission to handle this particular cat. It is of an unusual breed," Liz retorted with kindness dripping all over her words.

"Indeed," Iracemeth stated with suspicion.

"If you'll all excuse me, I must find my way to the High King," she said and bowed out.

Kaylie smiled with pleasure. She knew exactly what Liz was playing at. She took her cousin by the arm and walked off in the other direction. Jareth, who had been watching from the balcony, smiled brightly and returned to his hiding place away from Iracemeth.

Iracemeth lifted her chest and paraded herself around the room waiting for Liz to return. She had something in mind that would break that wench for certain. She knew that since she was exhausted from lack of sleep, she would be able to get her to lose her temper and grace. Not only would that invoke Jareth's disapproval, but she was sure it would cause her to lash out on Castle grounds without the invocation of a duel. This would prevent her from returning to the castle. For many reasons, this would suffice to take her temporarily out of the picture until she could win Jareth over again.

Liz walked down the hall with grace and dignity. There was nothing like a catty woman to make her regain her composure. She was so sleep deprived that she had gotten lost in the anger of the moment. She forgot about the pettiness of this woman. For some reason, she felt in her heart, this woman was no threat, even if she was working with Sarah to seek vengeance on both Liz and Jareth.

Once she found her way to the office, she knocked and was invited in by the same warm voice that she had conversated with before of King Dorian.

"Do come in, I was expecting you!" he called from behind the door.

"Ah," she replied, "Do you know why I've come?"

"No, but I do know that you are going to tell me. And judging by the expression on your face as you approached the castle, I may get the honor of witnessing you duel."

"Indeed. It seems I have a 'feline' problem. Iracemeth is interfering with my dreams. Do I have permission to challenge if she should interfere again?"

Understanding her request, and stifling a laugh, King Dorian acquiesced to her request.

"Should she interfere again, you have my word, and permission, that a challenge shall be met."  
"Thank you, Your Majesty. I really appreciate it."

He followed her out of his office offering to walk her to the door. As they approached the main hall once more, there Iracemeth stood.

"Oh! _Your Majesty_ ," she let the words ooze out of her mouth with false respect and kindness, "have you seen _my_ darling Jareth? He seems to evade me today!"

"That's because he's not _your_ 'darling Jareth'. He seems to evade you quite well, in fact." It was hard for King Dorian to not outright laugh at her, and that made her expression grow more irked.

"I am sure that he is, my king! He's been tricked by this imposter here to love her instead of me. Will you not help me?"

"I assure you, my lady, I have tricked no one. I use my ether on no one, forcing them to love me. Our love is pure and genuine."

Dorian couldn't help himself anymore. The mischievous side of all fae was something that was well known in all lands, and his was getting the better of him. He called for his servants to raise Jareth and watched as Iracemeth immediately began to fawn over him. Technically, they weren't allowed to see each other, but since Iracemeth was presenting such a fuss, King Dorian allowed it. He wanted to see how she would react.

Now it was Elizabeth's turn to not help herself. She began to laugh, mildly at first, then with full pleasure. She felt bad for Jareth, but she found it humorous how Iracemeth tried in vain to woo him. She had to know the old tricks weren't going to work. Liz could see why she had lost her favor. It was like watching an old woman who still thought she was young try to flirt her way out of a traffic ticket.

Iracemeth turned around at the sound of Liz's laughter. Jareth cut his eyes at Liz. He did not find it funny at all. Iracemeth was distracted just enough for Jareth to remove himself from her entanglement and move towards Liz. With two swift steps he had her in his arms. He didn't care who was in the room, he was stealing a kiss as long as he was allowed to see her. He was proud of how she was handling each situation with grace and dignity, even when she was completely exhausted.

Liz couldn't have been more excited to see him. She laughed into his shoulder when their lips had separated. She apologized for laughing, as well.

"I'm so sorry I laughed. I just couldn't help it."

"You know very well that I loathe her touch. Why didn't you step in?"

"You're a big boy, Jareth," she said, still giggling, "And besides, you know how you feel about me, and how I feel about you. She's harmless."

"She's standing right here, you imbecile!" Iracemeth snapped, realizing her feeble plan had failed.

"Lady Iracemeth, once I have matured into my full fae state, I will return. I request that you stay at this castle until that time. Expect a duel." The fire had returned to her eyes, the same fire that had terrified Brody, but Iracemeth tried not to notice it. Her tone was no longer the playful and sickeningly sweetness that it once was. Instead, Elizabeth held a cold expression on her face and stood firm. She looked every ounce of the princess that her title claimed her to be.

Iracemeth smiled wickedly in anger and responded through her teeth, "With pleasure."

With that she was escorted to a "private chamber" with "room enough to train, but far enough removed that Jareth will no longer be bothered". Apparently this was the typical punishment for interference when a duel is proclaimed. Now all that was left, was for Elizabeth to mature. It wasn't that she couldn't beat her on her own, but she would have control enough to not kill her in a fight. The only reason she didn't need to be mature to fight the bandits, was because she did not have to fight as hard for her life against mortals.

With Iracemeth being carried away to her "quarters", she said her final goodbyes to Jareth turned to leave. She saw Brody standing in the corner. He must have been there the entire time, even with the visit with the King. She watched as he was staring off in a direction and, following his eyes, found him to be staring after Kaylie.

Brody had stayed in the main hall the entire time. He no longer felt the need to defend her from petty women. He saw more than once that she was apt to handle the intrusions well. He preferred to watch Kaylie. He was more than discreet about it. More than a few times Brody had pretended to take an interest in cleaning the dirt from beneath his fingernails, fidgeting with the outfit that Liz had created for him (she had, quite a while back cleaned up his appearance so that he wouldn't be seen as a bandit, but as an honorable man), and talking to the guards to learn more about the fae way of life. His heart was torn. He was growing too soft for his own opinion. Little did he know that Liz had a plan for that grit and rough and tumble attitude.

Elizabeth walked over to where Brody was leaning against the wall. She placed a knowing hand on his shoulder and motioned her head for them to leave. By the time that they had returned to the Nine Kingdoms, there was more trouble to run from.

She returned just in time to see the whole of Kissing Town in the streets screaming "Mirror breaker" at Virginia and Tony. Wolf was once again nowhere to be found. They approached the pair fleeing with their ruck sacks in tow just outside of the town. Picking up step in time with them, Brody and Elizabeth shook their heads not even wanting to ask what happened this time.

They reached a little cabin and asked the owners if they could stay in the barn for a few nights. They were willingly obliged. Once inside, Liz could tell that Ginny was not happy at all. Brody sat down to help Tony rummage through the pieces of broken mirror, and that brought Liz to ask the question.

"What. The crap. Happened? Where is Wolf? Why is the mirror broken?"

Discerning the anger building in her sister's voice, and assuming that she was angry for the same reasons that she was said, "I know. Dad broke the mirror. Wolf lied and said that he lost everything, but then took me on an expensive date and tried to propose to me. As if I'd say yes after that! I told him I never wanted to see him again. So, here we are."

"WHAT?!" Elizabeth screeched out. "YOU TOLD HIM _WHAT_? YOU FOOL! I COULD HAVE _HELPED_ YOU BOTH! All you had to do was call for me! I would have helped you, and _discreetly_! But you just _had_ to do it on your own!"

She paused and walked toward the door, turning back at the stunned and silent group of people she pointedly addressed Brody, "Help them to get where they need to go. I need some air."

She turned back to the door she had stalked toward, opened it, and walked out slamming it behind her. She opened her great wings and flew high into the sky. She needed time to think. With the lack of sleep, both the paltry and scandalous attacks from Iracemeth, and the infuriating neglect from her family members, she couldn't hold her emotions at bay anymore. She was already frustrated with not being able to see or spend time with Jareth, minus the visit she had today, but it didn't feel like it was enough. She missed him more than she had before. The growing power within almost painful and she couldn't deal emotionally with her family's incessant need to do without her. The tears flowed down her face as a torrent of emotions flooded her mind.

She stayed away for days. She had to have time to clear her head. However, finding that no amount of time away would cure her loneliness from Jareth, and deciding to make amends with her family, she finally turned back and decided to find them.

As she approached from above, she could see them running. They were being chased by the troll trio. However, due to them having been gold, they cramped up in the middle of the street just in time for Ginny, Tony, Prince, and Brody to get away. Brody led them deep into a forested area that he knew would be safe from prying eyes, namely those of the trolls and the evil queen.

Liz flew low overhead, not caring if the trolls noticed or not, and swooped down into the trees. Without flaw, she smoothly transitioned into an owl and perched on a branch at the campsite.

"We have to stay 'ere a while. Sorry, but if we move anytime outsidda week, those trolls'll catch up ta's. Be'er let 'em pass us by." Brody said.

"So, we just wait here for a whole week?" Virginia asked incredulously. "Ugh, this couldn't get any worse."

"Ah, it ain't so bad, miss. You'll see. Be'er us hide 'ere, than them catch us an' we all die. Plus, you're sista 'll be back any minute, I'm sure." He tried his best to comfort her.

"Well, what do we do now?" Tony asked.

"Sit tight and do what Brody says. He knows the land better than any of us. He also knows trolls better than any of us. We need his guidance right now." Liz said, now back in her original form.

"Ginny, can we talk?" she added.

Ginny didn't say anything. She simply rose to her feet and followed Liz to the edge of the clearing. Liz knew that Ginny probably wouldn't speak to her but wasn't going to give her the opportunity to cut her down, anyway.

"Don't speak. Just listen," she started, and without pause continued, "I have been following you around useless and lonely like a lost little puppy. You have not once asked me to stay, neither have you asked me to leave. You haven't asked for my help, but I have had to help you many times. When I wasn't around, you got yourself into trouble every time. The man I am in love with is sitting around in a castle trying to constantly hide from a nemesis while she tries to ensnare him into a trap that she ought to know he won't fall for. I am watching one of my friends struggle with not only his identity, but as a man who is desperately trying not to a fall in love or make any moves that would break his curse because he actually likes serving me, as a friend. My father is having not only a mid-life crisis, but he is trying to let me go so that I can live my life, so that when I go through the trial, if I fail for any reason and die, he doesn't have to morn my loss as badly. If I pass, he may never get to see me again, again trying not to mourn me as badly. And to top it all off, my sister is blaming everyone else for the pain in her heart, except the one she should blame. Mother left us, I know it hurts, but its not everyone else's fault and it certainly isn't smart or healthy to push everyone away while telling them it's their fault for leaving. Make it right with Wolf. He loves you, do you have any idea what kind of risk he took in doing all of that for you? Just for you to throw it in his face? Still, none of that has anything to do with what I wanted to say. No matter how I feel or what I think, I love you. You are my sister. I should never have yelled at you that way, no matter what I think, and maybe, if you ever forgive me, we can talk more about what is going on with me, and I will listen to what's going on with you."

Ginny stood there a minute. Several times in Liz's speech she developed and angry look to her face. She thought before she responded.

"How could you blame me for pushing Wolf away? He lied to me. He said that he lost all of his money, then spent thousands on a ring, food, and a carriage ride. How can you say that I just threw it in his face?"

"Gin, look. He didn't have to lie, I grant you that. But did he risk your disapproval in asking for your hand? Did he put his heart and pride on the line so that he could give you a choice? I'm sure that he thought that if you married him, it wouldn't matter where you lived, because you could always be together. Or that you would give up the search for the mirror and stay with him. In the end, you could still have called on me. I would have helped you. I could fix the mirror, you know, but since I knew that you all have been resistant to me using my ether, I purposefully didn't."

"You mean, he loves me for real? Like, he's not pretending for the queen?"

"He's pretending for the queen," she paused, "but not for the reasons you think. He really loves you. And whether you admit it or not, you love him too. Take it from someone who spent seven years in denial."

Ginny didn't say anything. She was confused by Liz's words about Wolf, but she didn't ask questions. She knew better. She just hugged her sister stating that she forgives her and asking for forgiveness in return. The hug was returned, and the forgiveness requited. Together and in silence they returned to the center of the campsite. Exhausted, everyone got rest in shifts, but everyone got good rest.

A week had passed at the campsite, and Brody and Liz took turns scouting for the trolls. Liz was even able to trick the trolls into traveling in the complete opposite direction by sending out decoys through ether. Once they were sure the area was secured, the encampment packed up and headed out.

By the conversations that had been had between Tony and Brody, Liz knew that they were headed to Dragon Mountain. That was still a good week to two week's journey out. They still had a long way to go. This journey through this kingdom wasn't even close to being over yet, Liz felt.

They traveled in relative silence through the days. Everyone had so much on their mind that pleasant conversations didn't seem possible. What was said, when the did speak, was that of camp sites, dinner, and directions to take. Brody was the guide, alongside Prince, who unfortunately didn't know the hiding places in the land like Brody did. He kept them safe from the trolls and the huntsman he was sure was still following them.

Tony began to become a little worried about Liz. She was looking forlorn, and it had nearly been a month since she had seen him last, even with the interlude with Iracemeth. For weeks they had journeyed. Several times they had had to halt their journey and hide out in a secluded area waiting for danger to pass. Everyone could see that Elizabeth was getting restless.

They had stopped for camp. They were so close to the final stretch to the mountain that they could see the valley just ahead through the trees. Liz began preparing the firewood. They still carried the magic axe and she used it to chop down a small tree and begin to chop wood for a fire. She didn't know how many days they would be stopping for this time, but she was going to plan for at least a few nights. She set to work.

Vigorously, she chopped at the wood. She wore something similar to the clothes that she wore when she first arrived, with a long-sleeved cotton shirt of purple and black jeggings and black boots. She chopped as though the wood had insulted her. That provoked Brody to investigate whether she was ok.

"Lemme help ya," he said.

"I'm ok, Brody. I just need to do something. I can't sit still and think about stuff anymore. I need to be helpful."

"At least lemme move the wood ya chop to a pile by tha fire." He tried to persuade her to open up to him by helping.

"Sure," she said, allowing him to help.

"What's goin' on? You ain't yerself."

"A lot. Just… a lot. I don't really know how to talk to you about it." She said.

"Well, if not me, then yer sista."

She considered his comment and thought taking him up on that advice wouldn't be a bad idea. But before she could summon Ginny over, here came her father.

"Look, are we ever going to talk about it?" Tony asked.

"Look, Dad. I'm just frustrated right now. Here I am in a magical world where I discovered that I am not a human but a fae. I have been fae my whole life and my father didn't tell me what I was. I have been in love with another fae in my imagination for the last seven years and didn't even know it. My sister is in love with a Wolf that she misses, and it makes me feel guilty for missing Jareth, because we're actually together. I have cursed a man who has turned out to be a good man and a good friend to find true love and live a selfless life and I can't even break my own curse and set him free. I miss the only man I have ever wanted to be with, kiss, or marry. I mean, he's the only man that I actually want to touch me and be intimate with me and he isn't here. We are about to risk our lives for love in a trial that probably entails us running the Labyrinth, and I still haven't matured into full faedom!" she was yelling by the time she finished her tirade.

With the last words of her tantrum, she threw the axe into a knot in a tree directly in front of her. When it hit its mark, she turned around and began to sob. She didn't see the man standing right next to the tree she threw the axe into. He moved around to be closer to her, but she continued to sob.

That is, until she began to feel something deep inside of her. Suddenly, she was lifted off of the ground and she began to glow with a golden light. The light emitted from deep within her person and illuminated all that she was. The tears were replaced with gasps for air. The emotional pain with a sense of change and transformation. She had matured. She was now in full control and grasp of her power.

She took a deep breath and sighed out. She still missed him, but she knew that it was time to prepare for her duel against Iracemeth. She turned around to tell her family what would have to take place and saw him standing there. He had sensed that it was almost time for her to mature. He was allowed, since the maturation was the marking of the beginning of the trial, to retrieve her himself.

Jareth stood there with the firelight behind him. It made him look even more majestic than she could have ever imagined. She didn't even try to restrain herself. She ran into his arms jumping up and wrapping her legs around him completely. They nearly toppled to the ground together. She was so happy she began to cry again. Happy tears streamed down both of their faces. They kissed. They kissed as though nothing could fall.

When they finally broke apart, they turned to face the other travelers and addressed them. They explained what was about to happen with both the trial and with the duel. Tony was anxious to see the duel, but Liz promised that someone would tell them all about it when they returned.

Tony didn't want to see his daughter go. He wanted to spend more time with her. He was regretting how he had pushed her away during this nightmare of a journey. He stood up, walked over to Jareth, pointed his finger in the tall fae's face, and said, "You take care of my daughter. Make sure she passes the trial. And don't let her get hurt in the duel. You need your strength for the trial. Promise me, Jareth!"

"I give you my word," Jareth replied. "There's one more thing."

Jareth leaned in closer to Tony's ear so that only the two of them could hear. He whispered something, to which Tony agreed. And like that, the conversation was over. Jareth turned to face Elizabeth and urged her to make her goodbyes, because they would be leaving in the morning, all of them their separate ways. She did as was recommended.

Jareth ushered Liz into a clearing just out of earshot but not eyesight of the camp. He dropped down onto one knee in the moonlight and held out a little box.

"Elizabeth. My lovely Liz. Will you do me the honor of not just enduring this Trial with me, but of becoming my wife when it is over?"

Liz dropped to her knees. She was overwhelmed with joy. She said yes as she cried into his shoulder and he slipped the beautiful silver and amethyst ring onto her finger. It was a simple round shape, but it was surrounded by a row of diamonds. The silver was of the purest grade and it sparkled. It had been imbued with ether so that she could always communicate with those she loves just by a flick of her left hand.

Laughing and playing, teasing one another, they spent the night together. The next morning, she one again bade farewell to her father, sister, and step-brother/dog/prince. Brody would be travelling with them. They disappeared back into the Underground of the fae world. The real journey had begun.

There were many people at the castle. King Dorian had invited the nations together to witness the Trial. It was the largest event in Underground history since the curse had been set nearly a thousand years ago. First, there were announcements and the couple had to be presented to the courts. Then, the announcement of the trial would take place, in which everyone would retreat to the dueling arena in a field behind the grand castle. Lastly, the couple would make their own announcements to the council as to their plans and goals in the Trial. After that, nothing is left but the Trial itself. They had quite the spectacle ahead of them.

Due to the Trial being so close in time, Jareth and Elizabeth were allowed to share a room, but they didn't retire to their rooms to prepare for the festivities right away. They decided to mingle for a while getting to know some of the dignitaries of the land. If she was to be queen of the Goblin Kingdom, then she would need to be familiar with some of the politics.

When they walked into the great hall, they were wearing matching colors. Jareth had on a regal royal blue suit similar to the one that he had worn in the dream with Sarah, but this time, there was much less glitter. The tips of his hair had been dyed blue as well. His shirt had less ruffles, in fact, it looked more modern to Liz than the original. Liz wore a matching blue dress with mild glittery flecks all in it. It was a more modern cut that hung off of her shoulders, but she went nowhere without a corset. It was a long flowing dress that made her look taller than she was. It also showed off her muscles.

They walked around the room arm in arm while they met noble after noble. Once more they were met with Iracemeth and her icy glares, but they quickly and efficiently evaded her. Kaylie made her way from the crowd and walked toward her. She was happy to see her. This time the young fae had on a purple dress. Kaylie was quite beautiful, and Brody was once again speechless.

Liz leaned over to where Brody was standing and whispered in his ear, "Just talk to her. You don't have to rush into anything. Take time to be her friend."

Brody acknowledged her but said nothing.

"Kaylie! You do look beautiful, as usual!" Liz proclaimed.

"Thanks," she replied, "you do, too. I love the matching colors!"

"That's in case anyone gets any bright ideas," Jareth retorted glaring in Iracemeth's direction.

With a giggle, Kaylie asked Brody if he was alright. He had been looking a little pale standing there.

"I'm fine, Kaylie. I was wondrin'," he paused, "Would you like to dance wit me this evenin'? I'd like to get ta know ya a bit be'er." Brody did well, he thought. He didn't stumble on his words even once.

"Sure, Brody. Any friend of Liz is a friend of mine." She accepted.

Liz smiled a bright and proud smile as the two of them walked across the floor and enjoyed a few dances. Jareth and Elizabeth danced once or twice and then they went to speak to more nobles. One of the nobles they spoke to, was a woman of grand stature and significance, it seemed.

She carried herself highly but had humility in her voice. She was tall, blonde, and dressed as royalty. She had initiated the conversation, and by the end of it, had left Jareth and Elizabeth in shock. She turned out to be none other than Elizabeth's Aunt Cheryl. Cheryl had once ruled the land of Azrael but turned it down when Tony came of age. She had no taste for ruling. She retained her title and her position on the council, however.

She stood there fawning and preening over Liz. It was sweet, though. Not at all the irksome fiasco that some aunts display. She had been watching Liz, too, for quite some time, but when she became a young woman, she had to let go and allow Jareth to take the reins. She wanted to be there for her so many times, especially that fateful night, but it would seem that Jareth had long since had her in the best of care and health.

The night went on much in the same way for a few hours, that is until the time of the duel was marked. The whole room went silent as King Dorian approached the throne at the front of the room.

"Attention, please. It is time. Elizabeth and Iracemeth, please step forward."

The two women approached the center of the room directly in front of the throne. They stood there with their best posture trying to portray an air of regality. Well, at least Iracemeth was. Elizabeth felt she had nothing to prove.

"Iracemeth, for interference in the preparation of the Trial, you have been challenged to a duel. The night has come, and the arena has been prepared. This is your last chance. Do you still wish to accept?" King Dorian announced.

"I do," she said harshly, and a little smug.

"Elizabeth, I ask you the same question. Do you still wish to present this challenge?"  
"I do." Elizabeth spoke finitely.

"Very well. By the authority given me by the council, I now proclaim to all that the duel is set. Proceed to the arena!"

All of the fae filed out of the extremely large room and headed to the stands outside in the field. The arena was as large, if not larger, than your average football field. The stands had seats enough to fit all of the fae in the realms with room to spare. There was an enormous ethereal field that surrounded the arena. Liz knew that it was to prevent any magical energies and attacks from straying into the crowds. There were also two sets of pillars. One set on either side of the arena stood as entrances.

The first into the arena was Iracemeth. She stood there waiting for Elizabeth to arrive. She was standing in an arrogant posture with her arms crossed over her chest. She wore a revealing white leather outfit that exposed her mid-section, among other things.

Liz was preparing herself mentally for the fight, but suddenly felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Liz, please be careful. Don't lose your head out there." Warned Jareth.

"Don't worry, I won't. I'll stay focused like you taught me."

"Please understand. I am not worried that she will hurt you, I am worried that you may kill her if she gets under your skin. Don't let that happen."

Liz didn't say anything else. She smiled in agreement and planted a kiss on his lips before walking toward the place where she would fight the duel.

Stepping into the arena, time seemed to slow down dramatically. All the crowd could see is one foot at a time entering in. Slowly, her stiletto heels transformed into knee high boots with laces down the front. They were black and had a metal knife-like heel to them. They were a higher heel than her usual four-inch ones. Her pants were black. The jeggings, as she called them, only went to her hips and there a black and silver belt was through the loops. She wore a white peasant style shirt, albeit more fitted than usual, with a black corset with purple accents and laces. She wore a purple jacket that was ground length and split tail. It's collar was high and straight like Jareth's jackets all were. The front of it was cropped to only button from her chest up. She looked absolutely amazing and absolutely frightening at the same time.

Brody thought to himself, _yeah, that's the Goblin Queen, alright_ , Jareth was beaming with sheer joy, Kaylie was thinking to herself, _oh, that's my best friend now_ , and Iracemeth was thinking that she could win, even though the odds looked to be clearly in her favor.

"It's not too late, Iracemeth. Turn back and end this foolishness now. It doesn't have to be this way. Repent for what you've done and lets be done with this," Liz was trying to evade having to hurt her any worse than what would absolutely be necessary. Besides, if she was arrested instead for her interference, then she would be out of her hair, later.

"Still trying to run away? If you were so afraid to lose, then perhaps you should never have challenged me! You'll pay for what _you've_ done! You have stolen Jareth from _me_! Interfered in _my_ plans! And called me a _pathetic cat_! I'm going to have fun crushing you!" she yelled.

"So be it. Let's begin."

Iracemeth was the first to strike. She threw a fireball directly at Liz, but Liz just stood there. The fire didn't even phase her. Not a hair on her head even moved from the wind it produced. Angry, Iracemeth began to throw more magic at her, but again and again, the ether didn't touch her.

Now it was Elizabeth's turn. She turned flush to Iracemeth and faced her. Standing shoulder width apart her hands came down to her waist in front of her, just as she had seen Jareth do a million times to summon a crystal. She crossed her wrists, splayed her fingers, and without missing a beat a crystal was in her hand. She threw it at the ground in front of Iracemeth and with a huge bang the bright blue explosion sent Iracemeth flying backwards and into the protection field.

This only made Iracemeth angrier. Forgetting her ether, she came running at Liz with hand to hand combat. She summoned a sword and began to lash out at the Princess. But Liz had been trained well. She couldn't land a single blow. Now Iracemeth was seeing red. She couldn't take it anymore. She transformed into a tiger and lunged at Liz, not expecting her to counter in the exact same manner.

The two tigers met as they leapt into the air. They spun around and landed on the hard ground with a thud. Clawing and slashing at each other the tigers fought, but Iracemeth could not get ahead or an edge on Elizabeth no matter how hard she tried. She had no more outs, and she was not going to play fair anymore.

Soon they were back in their original forms and fighting with their ether. Explosions were going off so much that it was difficult to see what was happening. Then, all of a sudden, Liz let her wings emerge and she flew up just a few feet into the air and blew Iracemeth back with the force of her wind. Landing, she began attacking again.

Eventually, Iracemeth managed to strike her dagger straight through Elizabeth's jacket. Liz stepped back looking at the cut. Appalled she threw off the jacket and flung it behind her.

"That was my good coat," she jested with the angry fae.

Once more Iracemeth was in tiger form, but Liz could see that there was no more playing around with this woman. She wasn't going to stop until she drew blood. She faced the raging beast running her way, and as it leapt into the air once more, she slid beneath it and kicked her feet up beneath its rear legs sending it flipping onto its head and tumbling back into Iracemeth.

"Give up! This is futile. I've more than proved I can beat you. I don't want to hurt you. Yield!" Liz said to her.

"Never," Iracemeth said, "To the death!"

The crowd gasped. There rarely was a fight to the death. Jareth reminded Liz not to lose her head and she acknowledged, but before she could return to the fight, Liz was pinned down by sharp teeth to the ground. She felt her warm blood dripping from between her shoulder blades and over her shoulders. This made Liz angry.

Immediately she threw out her wings, flew up into the air, and elbowed the tiger in the ribs. That made Iracemeth let go, and when she did, Liz whipped around and grabbed Iracemeth's tiger form by the back of the neck and the skin by her hips. She spun around once more gaining momentum as she flung the tiger full force into the pavement of the arena, cracking it and creating a crater.

She landed with a sonic boom and walked over to Iracemeth's still form. She healed the wounds on her back and transformed back into her dress. She had nearly killed Iracemeth, but she would live if Liz could help it. She healed Iracemeth and listened as her breath came back into her lungs with a loud gasp. She was escorted out of the arena by guards and the crowds knew that night to never challenge the Princess Elizabeth.

Jareth swept Liz up into a loving embrace as they enjoyed the rest of the night. The rest of the proceedings went well, and they were given another night to rest before the Trial. After the events, Jareth and Liz returned to their room, but they couldn't sleep. They stayed up all night sitting by the window holding each other. They didn't know how tomorrow would end, but they were determined to enjoy the moments that they had now just in case.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5:**

The morning sun rose up into the room. Its brilliance shone on the couple that was still awake and in each other's arms looking out as it rose above the trees. Today was the day. In just a few hours the Trial would begin. Neither of them had any idea what was in store. That was the point in keeping them separated from one another. Their love had to be tested to be pure and honest. They took a deep breath, shared a kiss, and took their leave of the room.

They made their way down to the dining hall and took their breakfast. There was already a crowd of people eyeing them as they ate. They were still able to eat in relative silence, though the murmuring had also begun. In an hour or two, they would be off running the labyrinth while the masses onlooked through the spyglass. It was one thousand years in the making. They would not miss it for anything.

After breakfast the two of them met in the center of the great room with the High King. Dorian called for attention and made the announcement. It was brief, and then he walked to the center, where Jareth and Elizabeth stood. In low tones he addressed the couple.

"Do be careful out there. We have worked diligently to make it quite the challenge. It will not be easy," he warned.

"I have absolute confidence in her love and her ability, as I am sure she is confident in mine," Jareth replied, attempting to not look concerned.

"It isn't going to be a 'one-at-a-time' thing, Jareth. You must run your own labyrinth, but you must do it," King Dorian paused, "together."

Jareth and Elizabeth looked at each other. If the Labyrinth was difficult enough to be run side by side, then it must hold some dark tests indeed.

Without further ado, the area where Jareth and Liz stood suddenly became the deserted garden area, dry and foreboding, just outside the gate to the Labyrinth. They no longer stood in the beautiful castle. It was time to begin. Dorian longed to tell them what was lying in store for them, but he knew that he could not. The curse would not break unless it was pure and proven love between them. Now, it was up to the Labyrinth to decide.

Jareth changed from his more formal attire from the night before into his black pants, boots, crop, and red shirt. It was the same outfit that he faced Sarah in when she came for Toby. He thought it seemed appropriate that the clothes he once fought to gain love in should be the same as the ones he fought to save his love in.

Elizabeth changed, too. She wore the same warrior clothes that she had worn at the duel. Except, this time, she wore retractable claw gloves. The one stipulation to this test, it had to be done without magic, and she wasn't going in there completely unprotected. Goblins and rock callers were not the only beasts that lurked within the Labyrinth.

Hoggle opened the doors for them as they approached. They each took a deep breath and stepped inside. Liz didn't need to waste time running down an endless faux corridor. She stepped right through the entrance directly in front of the door and turned left. Jareth followed.

There were three things that they knew right off of the bat. There were three challenges to this Trial, the first of which is the Labyrinth, itself. The minute they stepped through the first gate, they were stripped of all of their Ether, not to gain it back until they complete the Trial. Nothing is what it seems in this place, not even for the Goblin King.

At first, the Labyrinth seemed to open up for them, making their paths easy and straight. The walls didn't close in around them. The walk-walk goblins weren't complaining and rearranging the walkways. It was all too simple, too easy. They looked at each other with confusion written on their faces.

"Something's not right, Jareth. They prepared these challenges for over two months, it's not this easy, it can't be," Liz said.

"I agree. Something isn't right about the simplicity of the Labyrinth. It shouldn't be allowing us passage so easily," Jareth replied.

As if the Labyrinth itself had read their minds a doorway appeared before them. It began to glow in a strange golden light as it spoke to them. It was a red door with golden inlays in the shape of vines and leaves.

The door spoke in verse, "Trust your love, and do not fear. If you do, the end is near. When darkness calls and danger springs, and out of walls come sufferings, hold on tight to what you feel. Forget the know, begin to yield. If you hold her ever near, and if you call him 'Lover Dear', then never falter, never fear."

"What the heck is that supposed to mean?" Liz was thoroughly confused. It was too much information at once, and yet, not enough.

"Well, at least we know to not fear. It said it more than once," Jareth responded.

"Trust your love and do not fear. Ok, well, I do trust you, so now what?"

"I don't think it means that we are to trust one another, but in our love for one another."

"Do you think that when we walk through that door, something's going to happen?"

"Absolutely. Hold onto me."

Liz took Jareth's arm. The door swung open as they approached it, and they lifted their countenance high and strengthened their resolve. It was time for the real challenges to begin. The minute that they were through the door, Liz turned back to Jareth to wish him luck, only to find that he was no longer there. They had been separated. It was time to face things on their own… the riddle suddenly made more sense, she thought.

She took a deep breath and continued on her way. The Labyrinth was suddenly not so obliging to her traversing it. More than once she found herself at a dead end. One of the dead ends was a nest of spiders. She made her U-turn without waking the sleeping monstrosities. They weren't ordinary spiders. They were giant spiders the size of buffalo. Her eyes bugged out of her head at the sight. She would be happy to never see it again. She _hated_ spiders.

Before long, she realized that she was actually making progress. She could see the castle in the distance growing larger as time passed her by. She took time to sit and rest her feet. Without her ether, she was more easily fatigued. She leaned back against a wall wanting to just sit a moment. As she rested her head back, she heard a ticking noise. It made her skin crawl. It sounded like… _no_ , she thought, _not that_!

Before she had time to get up off of her feet a fleet of five giant spiders came barreling around the corner she had just rounded. The middle one leapt into the air to begin its attack. Liz spun around onto her back on the ground and put her feet on the wall. Just as the spider had reared up to attack again she kicked the wall and slid beneath it. Unfortunately, that put her directly in the path of the two spiders immediately to the left and right of the middle one. Liz rolled out of the way and onto her feet.

Elizabeth flicked her wrists to reveal the retractable claws on her gauntlets. She braced herself. The spider on the far right leaned back and spat poison at her, but she ducked it by cutting a backflip out of the way. Once again the middle spider lunged forward to attack, but she ducked out of the way and spun herself around using its own leg to climb onto its back. She took her claws and slammed her hands down hard severing the spiders head from its abdomen. Before she could finish killing the first, one of the next jumped forward and knocked her off of its sibling's back.

She winced at the pain that now throbbed in her shoulder. The spider's leg had scratched her. She wasn't hurt badly, in fact, it was barely enough to break skin, but it still took her by surprise. It reminded her that she could die in this Trial if she wasn't careful, but according to the door, she couldn't afford to be afraid.

Liz quickly got to her feet as the spider who knocked her down was speeding towards her. She ran forward sliding on her knees and reached up to scratch the spider down its belly. It jumped in pain and whipped around to attack again, but Liz had its front legs and head off before it could retaliate.

It didn't take long, but it definitely was tiring. One by one the spiders attacked, and sometimes all at once, but Liz was able to take them all. She was nearly poisoned several times and the arm that donned the scratch now also sported a cut. It wasn't a large cut, but it was deep enough that it may slow her down in any further fights she would have to face.

She needed a break. She sat back down along the wall in the midst of the carnage she had left behind. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Slowly she drifted off into a deep sleep. She was regretting not sleeping the night before as she floated away into blackness.

Jareth was about to give Liz a kiss on the cheek to encourage her and remind her of his love for her, when he noticed that she wasn't there. His heart nearly sank, but he tried to keep the door's words locked in his mind. He had to press on to find her. Time wouldn't wait for them.

Jareth rounded corridor after corridor. The Labyrinth was much more difficult to solve now. He wondered how Liz was doing. All he could think was that their love would guide them back to one another if they remained faithful to it and trusted in it. He hoped that she was making progress.

There were a great many things that he had hidden from Sarah when she ran the Labyrinth that were only afraid of him because he was stronger than them. Now that he had to face the Labyrinth as a mortal, he was sure that he would be attacked. He kept his eyes open for any hungry predators on the hunt. That's when he turned a corner and came face to face with an ogre. He turned to retreat back the way he came, but the walls boxed him in. He had no choice but to fight. He drew his sword.

The ogre stood a good ten feet tall. He was pure muscle and had long horns that twisted up in an unruly spiral. He roared with a deep voice and lurched forward at Jareth. It reached for the lanky figure, but before it could grab hold, Jareth had jumped up on the wall and landed a solid punch to its jaw. This only staggered and angered the large creature. It growled and responded to his blow in kind. The ogre gave Jareth a backhand to the stomach which sent him flying into the wall. Jareth got up a little shakier than he had expected. He would have to try harder if he wanted to get out of this one.

Jareth thought for a moment, then quickly acted on the battle plan he had envisioned. He swept around the ogre's feet using his sword to cut the tendons and muscles in its legs. The beast came crashing down to the ground with a loud thud. The king of the goblins tumbled himself out of the way of the falling ogre and was quick to climb upon its chest. He took his sword and removed the head of the ogre from its body. This fight was over.

Exhausted, he turned to continue on his quest. The Labyrinth again allowed him passage. He walked towards a scene of death and blue blood spilled everywhere. Spider bodies were lying around dismembered and broken. On the ground against a wall sat his beautiful Elizabeth. Her own blood stained her shirt. He rushed over to her side to see if she was alright.

"Elizabeth!" He shouted.

She stirred from her slumber with a groan. "Jareth?"

"Love, you're hurt. What's happened?"

"Can't you tell," she said as she let out a little giggle. "Ah," she continued as she smarted at the pain in her arm, "one of them got my arm. It's not bad, but it stings. I hope it doesn't slow us down too much."

"You were asleep against the wall, are you sure you are alright?" he repeated, still concerned for her.

"Yea. Just wishing we'd gotten rest like King Dorian suggested. I was tired. I needed to rest. I'm ready to go now."

They got up and headed on their way again. He wished that he could heal her arm, but the only way that that could happen is by them completing what they came here to do.

It wasn't long before they were attacked again. Another ogre came out of the Woodstock, but to Jareth's surprise, he didn't stand a chance against Liz. Her smaller stature made it possible for her to duck between his legs where he couldn't reach her without leaving itself completely vulnerable to her attacks. If it leaned forward, it would be clawed in the face, and if it reached down, it would be slashed by Jareth's sword. It didn't take any time at all, and the thing was down on the ground dead.

They took a deep breath and allowed themselves another five-minute break before continuing yet again. They were making even better progress together, than they had been making apart. They were almost to the forest, but that didn't mean that they were out of danger. Jareth knew what lurked in the forest. If his suspicions were correct, even the Wild Gang was in hiding from the beast that dwelt among the trees.

Just like Sarah, they came upon the two doors with the rings. One had a ring in its mouth and the other had a ring in its ears. They contemplated which door to take. One of the doors would lead them to the beast, the other, to the castle. Liz took one good long unshakable look at Jareth and reached out to knock on the door. She chose the door that had the rings in its ears. Three times the ring rapped on the door and it swung open.

It was dark, too dark, Jareth thought. They were in danger if the Castle didn't appear soon. It was wet, too. Even Liz was regretting the choice she had made.

"We can't turn back now. We have to keep moving, remember? This is a Trial. We knew it would be dangerous. We knew we were risking our lives. Just remember that I love you. Hang onto that, no matter what happens, promise me, Jareth," Liz said.

"I promise," he replied taking her by the hand and pulling her into him for a long sweet kiss.

"I don't plan on dying today, and you shouldn't either."

"That wasn't a goodbye kiss, Liz, that was for good luck."

"I don't believe in luck, I believe in faith," she said.

When Jareth let her go they both felt a thick globule of something clear and slimy fall to the ground between them. It soaked the front of their clothes and thoroughly disgusted them. They looked up to see where it had come from and noticed that a gargantuan spider was standing directly above them waiting to strike.

"I knew we chose the wrong door!" he yelled in dismay.

"No, Jareth, Its one of the challenges, it's the right door! Don't forget! Part of the challenge is trusting in one another and our love!" she shouted back as they ducked out of the way.

The great beast maneuvered around them stabbing with its legs and spitting with its fangs at the two lovers caught in its lair. It was hard to land a blow to the thing as it was so large. One of its legs came down and knocked Liz off of a perch she was on and onto her back. She looked behind her to see if she could find a way to escape or to press in for a good attack, and when she did she saw the castle. They were so close! If they could defeat this challenge, then they would be at the castle and almost finished with their quest and Trial!

As she looked back to the spider, it was gaining on Jareth, now. She made to roll to her feet and something caught the cut arm. She winced in pain and looked to see what it was. Someone had dropped their bow and arrows! It was very old and didn't look like it could hold up well in a fight, but it was worth a shot! She picked it up and took aim. _So far, so good_ , she thought. She loosed the arrow and it stuck straight into the rear of the spider's abdomen. _Yes!_ She thought again with joy and knocked another arrow.

She took aim again, as the spider whipped around to come for her. Counting its eyes, she counted the arrows. She didn't have enough for all of its eyes, but if she could time it right, she could jump up on its head using its legs, like her babies she'd killed, and use her claws to finish it off. She loosed one of the arrows directly into the first eye. She hit. Blue blood spurted out and the spider faltered in its step. Jareth used the opportunity to swing at one of the rear legs, which came off easily and quickly.

Sarah knocked yet another arrow. They were working well together as a team. She trusted in him, she trusted in her. She gave him a knowing look and he nodded his head. She loosed another arrow into the second eye. Another leg in the rear came off, it was down to four legs. _Six eyes, and only two more arrows_ , she thought, but if Jareth kept taking legs off like that, it wouldn't be a problem to take the monstrous thing down.

Once more she knocked arrows, but this time, she knocked two. She took a deep breath and trusted in herself. Loosing, the arrows one went directly into the third eye, and the other, even though she had missed the eye, sped for the center of the head. That was an even better shot than she could have ever hoped for. Jareth didn't waste time with legs at that shot, he took advantage of the chance they had been given and climbed onto the back of the monster and took its head.

"There is an awful lot of decapitating going on around here," she said half wistfully and half weary to Jareth.

Panting, Jareth smiled and slid off of its back. They leaned against the tree as they took in the beautiful sight before them. They had to cross the Valley of Lost Things and then head for the castle. They were almost finished!

Their spirits lifted, and they continued on to finish their journey. The Valley of Lost Things was no problem at all. The Goblin City was vacant. Their stomachs dropped into a bottomless pit as they continued toward the castle. They took one look at each other and marched into the partially open doors of the castle.

"We have to face this challenge alone, again, don't we?" she asked begrudgingly.

"Yes, I believe we do, but I hold you ever near, Love. I trust that your love is enough for me. Good luck, Elizabeth. I love you." He said.

"And I call you Lover Dear. I love you, too, Jareth. See you on the other side," she said smiling and running up the stairs.

She ran full up into the Escher room where Jareth had faced all of the other runners before. As she entered, she was met with an alternate version of Jareth. He was twisted looking wearing reds and blacks that resembled death and ugliness. His eyes were not blue, but red. He walked around Liz seemingly sizing her up. She drew closer to him and held herself confidently.

"This isn't my trial is it?" she asked.

"What makes you say that?" imitation Jareth asked in return.

"Because if I need to trust in his love for me, then he would have to trust in my love for him. That would mean that he would have to sit back there in his throne room trusting that my love for him would get me through this test," she replied.

"That would be correct," he said grinning at her, showing all of his teeth.

"Let's get to it, then," she exclaimed.

False Jareth withdrew his sword from its scabbard. It was a twisted thing with jagged edges and evil-looking barbs. She knew that this would not be a fair fight. She had to trust that she was strong enough to defeat him.

Jareth sat in his throne. It was one of the many things that he did to comfort himself. Something wasn't right. He didn't feel right about Liz facing the trial alone, but he also felt that he would cause something worse to happen to her if he interrupted and helped her. He kept running the scenario through his mind trying to figure it all out.

He remembered the words of the glowing door. They tumbled around in his memory like a broken record.

" _Trust your love, and do not fear. If you do, the end is near. When darkness calls and danger springs, and out of walls come sufferings, hold on tight to what you feel. Forget the know, begin to yield. If you hold her ever near, and if you call him 'Lover Dear', then never falter, never fear."_

"'Trust your love and do not fear'. Ok, trust in my love for Elizabeth, I understand that much. 'If you do, the end is near'. Do what? Trust in my love, or not? Which one? 'When darkness calls and danger springs, and out of walls come sufferings'…That has already happened. We trusted in our instincts and survived. 'Forget the know, begin to yield'…" Jareth paused in his spoken thoughts, "Forget what I know. The end of the Trial is now. I have to trust that she loves me enough to make the right decisions in there. There is nothing I can do but wait. I must yield to the Trial."

He sat down feeling like he had done all he could. There was nothing else left. If he trusted that she loved him, then she would come down those stairs soon enough, or perhaps she wouldn't. Either way, if she loved him, she would succeed, and he did believe in her. Yes, he did.

Elizabeth began defending herself against his attacks while she tried to figure out what exactly the Trial wanted from her. She had to prove nothing, except that she loved him. So, what was it that it was trying to test in her? If she died, then Jareth would be forced to live his life under a curse and unhappy, unless her death broke the curse, but then he wouldn't have her, still leading to his unhappiness. If she won, the Trial could twist it into something about her selfish gains in his kingdom. If she didn't fight, she could be considered a coward. What could she do? How was she supposed to defeat this challenge, especially when it didn't seem like there was a way out.

She tried to remember the words of the door. _'Forget the know, begin to yield'_ , she thought. Maybe there was a way out of this after all! She let the illusion of Jareth begin to berate her with attacks. Blow after blow after blow he swung at her. She defended them all.

"I won't fight you," she said.

"So be it," the evil Goblin King spat, "Then you will die. And Jareth will never be free from his curse."

"You can't intimidate me with that," she said, "I know that he loves me. I will die for him if it means freeing him from his curse. I did once, I will do it again."

The twisted illusion came running toward her, but she didn't budge. He raised his sword up for an attack, but she didn't defend herself. At the last moment, before he was to strike her, he stopped. Directly in front of her, with his left hand on her shoulder and his right poised to stab her, he stopped and looked at her with anger and confusion.

"I am about to kill you, are you not going to defend yourself?"

"I swore to love Jareth for all of who he is, not just a portion of him. Not just the good, the bad, too. I love him. I have nothing to prove to you, rest assured, I will have to prove my love for him, but here, I trust in him to love me enough to save me, even from death," she said, very determined and absolutely.

He thrust the sword forward and it came protruding out of her back, with all of its barbs, it would not return the way it had come. The Trial Jareth would have to find another weapon to test Jareth with. After all, Jareth had passed his test, now she was to have to pass hers.

Her body dissipated into the blackness and shadows. The Trial made it look as if no blood had ever been spilled, it was Jareth's turn to face it.

Jareth, sensing that something had happened turned to face the stairs. He waited a second more, wanting to be sure that Elizabeth had indeed completed her test. Then, he made his way up the stairs and into the chamber. There he saw a version of himself that disgusted him. He couldn't stand the hateful blood-like reds that he wore. Jareth was beginning to understand what challenge he would have to face in seeing this hideous man before him.

The Trial walked over to Jareth and began to size him up the way that he had done Liz. He laughed wickedly as he walked around the Escher room.

"I killed your precious woman! Now I have the chance to kill you! Then, I will rule the Labyrinth and the Goblin City! What do you think about that?" The Trial shouted in triumph at Jareth.

"I think that you underestimate us." Jareth pulled his sword from its hiding place at his side. "I will finish you and you will return to me what you have taken."

They fought for what seemed like hours. Liz had awoken shortly after her "death" in a room that seemed to be invisible to the two men, however, she could see the fight in front of her. She was a little concerned that Jareth would not see the true nature of the challenge. She wanted to tell him that he needed to forgive himself and show himself that his old nature had no power over him, but she had to trust that he would do it on his own.

In her little silent room, she sat quietly with her hands up against the invisible wall. She breathed deeply and let out a sigh.

"I trust you, Jareth. You got this. I have felt your love for me, and I know that you love me. I know that you can save us. I believe in you," she whispered.

Jareth didn't know where he got the extra surge of energy, but he was able to fight with more vigor than before. Round and round went by as the two men struck at one another. The two of them were beginning to tire, and that is when Jareth noticed it.

The Trial had made a mistake. He left his right guard open and Jareth got in a lucky hit. Unfortunately, when he did, Jareth also winced in pain. They could hurt each other, and they were connected. Whatever Jareth did to the Trial, he did to himself. Jareth dawned with understanding. He couldn't kill the Trial, but he had to make himself one with it somehow.

"Jareth, I will use every tactic that you once used on the people of this kingdom. The wished- away babies and children will become goblins, and you will be my slave. I think I will keep you alive just to watch you squirm as you are helpless to defend your people," Trial preened.

Jareth's eyes became large and round. He had heard things like this before, but this was a dark and twisted version of himself. He realized at that moment that this was him. It was the man that he wanted to become after Iracemeth had had him cursed. He realized what he needed to do.

"Through dangers untold and hardships unnumbered, I have fought my way here to the castle beyond the Goblin City to take back my bride that you have stolen," Jareth began.

"Stop it, fool! I will kill you both!" Trial nearly begged.

"For my will is as strong as yours and my kingdom as great," Jareth mercilessly continued.

Trial lunged forward at Jareth and stabbed him in the same place that Brody had. He slowly ran the sword through him completely until they were face to face.

"I forgive myself for what I've done in the past. I love Elizabeth. I am sorry to have failed her. My past has no power over me." Jareth wheezed out as the two of them crumpled onto the floor.

The invisible wall was gone, and Elizabeth came running over to where Jareth was lying on the ground bleeding out. She had tears in her eyes. The Trial Jareth had disappeared and all that remained was Jareth's hand on his own sword. She picked his head up and put in in her lap, even though the room was crumbling around them. She didn't care. She kissed him repeatedly until they began to fall.

With a thud, they hit the ground again, but this time the sword was gone. Light began to swirl all around them and Liz got up to meet Jareth where he had landed. The wound that he had given to himself was gone and he was no longer dying. They were together. They felt a surge of energy rush through them as their power was restored.

"It wasn't as graceful this time, as when Sarah was here," he groaned, still in pain from where he had been stabbed, now twice.

Liz laughed, "Well, you're aren't with Sarah. You're with me. And it seems, you're stuck with me for the rest of eternity."

A ball light began to grow in front of them, glowing the same golden color that the door's light had been. Out of it came the same voice from the door.

"You have passed the Trial. Congratulations. I applaud you. I didn't think that you would figure it out at first." The voice said.

"Who are you?" Elizabeth asked.

"This is the Labyrinth. The spirit of the One who connects all things and realms together. He is the one who showed us what to do when we needed help," Jareth answered.

"Indeed. I am the One of whom you speak. I will be with you always. Go, marry, and produce after your own kind," the One spoke again and then vanished.

Upon the disappearance of the One's ball of light, the weary couple was suddenly standing in the great hall of the grand castle once again. They were disheveled from their Trial but were met with a magnificent applause. Cheers went up from all around the room for the Conquerors of the Curse.

Jareth swept his fiancée up in his arms and kissed her deeply. He was happy to be free. He summoned a crystal and took a look at his kingdom, their kingdom. Green was growing on the outskirts of the kingdom where the Labyrinth walls stood. The barren trees produced fruit again. The Labyrinth, itself began to look like it was full of live and vitality. The curse was broken, and the land was healed. Elizabeth had freed him.

The celebration was scheduled for the next day, and Jareth and Elizabeth decided it was time for some much-deserved rest. They could determine the date of their wedding when they woke up, for now, everyone's questions only made them want to escape to a bed more quickly than the fatigue in their arms and legs.

The next time that Jareth and Elizabeth woke up, three more days had passed. It had been a week and a half since she had seen her sister, and she was concerned. Before she could go down to the ballroom to celebrate her victory, she had to be sure that her father and sister were alright. She wondered if they had made it to their destination.

When she summoned the spyglass, she saw that they were in the back of a wagon chained up and unconscious. They were being taken directly to their mother, the evil queen. There were the three trolls, Prince, and a sleeping man she could only assume was the huntsman that was sent to kill them by the queen. She gasped, which alarmed Jareth.

"What is it, Liz?" he asked in concern.

"Ginny, Prince, and Dad are all in trouble. I need to help them," she said as she got up and prepared to leave.

"Elizabeth, wait," Jareth began as he stood up after her.

"Don't try to stop me, Jareth. My sister is in danger. The huntsman has her, Dad, and Prince. I can't just sit here and do nothing.

"My love, I am coming with you. I will let King Dorian know where we have gone." He sent a crystal ball "letter" to the High King and they disappeared into the nine kingdoms once more.

When they stepped through the veil of the realms and into the Nine Kingdoms, Liz threw a crystal into the air which became a tracking trail of glittery smoke. Immediately they were able to see a blue glittering shadow of smoke clones of Tony, Virginia, and Prince. They followed the trail together until they saw the smoke clones separate. Virginia and Tony rolled out of the wagon they had been in and wandered into a swamp, while Prince was headed directly toward the castle.

"You go for your sister, I'll get the dog," Jareth said, turning to Liz.

She shot him a nod and took off spreading her large white wings and flying towards the wooded swamp. She could see the smoke trails divide again with her father and sister going in opposite directions. She transformed completely into an owl so that she could swiftly maneuver through the trees. She was in a hurry. She didn't know how much time her sister had left, but she feared it wasn't long at all. That's when she noticed that not only did her smoke trails dissipate completely, leaving her completely clueless as to which direction to fly in, but she was accidentally knocked into a branch by a speeding shadow. When she found her bearings again, she realized just who the speeding shadow was, and followed in hot pursuit of the half wolf.

He got there just in time. She was just behind him. He began to frantically pull vines off of both Virginia and Tony as Liz transformed to help him and the two of her family members to their feet. Wolf was busy with his tight embrace of Virginia while Liz flung her arms around her father's neck.

"Thank God! I didn't think we'd make it here in time! I'm so glad Wolf bumped into me, otherwise I wouldn't have found you!" Liz was nearly breathless and shouting at the same time if were at all possible.

"I'm sure glad to see you, too, baby girl," Tony replied.

Liz noticed how Virginia had pulled Wolf to the side and slowed down to trail behind a bit, but she also knew that they had much to discuss and so she led her father onward and ahead to the castle. She had tossed a crystal onto the ground and the pair followed through the swamp towards a clearing just few miles ahead of where they were.

When they were all finally together again, Liz smiled deeply. She knew that the relationship had been repaired. Then, suddenly, like a horrible afterthought, she frowned.

"Gins, can I speak with you in private?"

"Private? We're in the middle of the woods, everywhere is private and not at all at the same time," Wolf quipped.

"Alone, then?" She gave a pointed look to Virginia.

"It's alright," Virginia said in a comforting sort of way when Wolf's inquisitive glare wouldn't fade, "We'll be right back. NO eavesdropping. I mean it." She added the last part because she saw the way that Tony and Wolf seemed to suddenly pique with mischief in their eyes.

Ginny and Liz walked to another little clearing roughly a mile away. Liz didn't want to risk being seen or heard by the men.

"Gins, first of all, I told you so. You're welcome. And second of all, be careful. Don't do what I think you two are about to do. I mean, wait until you're married. It's better that way," said Liz.

"Liz, I appreciate what you're trying to do, but I am so tired of hiding from how I feel about people and relationships. It's about time I took a step of faith," Virginia replied.

"I am not telling you to not take a leap of faith in your relationship with Wolf. I am trying to persuade you to be wise in your intimacy with him. Wolves may mate for life, but it's still better to be married to him first. Look, I know it's your life. You can do what you want with it, but I am just trying to save yourself some regrets later in life. Consider it?" Liz was all but begging her sister to abstain from premarital intercourse, but she had a nauseating feeling that that warning wouldn't be heeded.

Once they returned to their little "hiding place", lo and behold, Tony wanted wood for a fire and her sister and future brother-in-law ran off volunteering for the search of it. Unfortunately, they also returned some time later disheveled and without the object of their quest. Liz hung her head in disappointment, and she wondered what was taking Jareth so long to return. Almost as if to read her thoughts, he appeared right in front of her startling her from her troubled thoughts.

"Oh!" She jumped, "Geeze, babe, you scared me!" She laughed a bit and motioned for him to sit next to her. Laying her head on his shoulders.

"I have news. Prince is alright, but he is almost completely lost to the dog form. We haven't much time. Also, the queen is planning on murdering all of the guests. I have a plan for the two of us to enter the castle, but I am not sure about the rest of our little family," Jareth said, sounding thoughtful and tired at once.

"So, what are we supposed to do now?" Tony asked.

"We wait for dark and enter the castle once all the guests have arrived," Wolf said.

"And what do we do until then?" Tony asked again.

"Sleep," Jareth and Wolf chimed in unanimously and in sync.

"Did I miss something?" Tony sounded peeved.

"Be glad you did. For now, Dad, sleep. Everyone is tired, even you, it's in your eyes." Elizbeth placed a loving hand on her father's shoulder before snuggling back into Jareth's side and falling fast asleep.

When night finally fell, Wolf woke everyone up and the group split into two. Wolf, Tony, and Virginia went under the moat, but not before Elizabeth covered them with the Protective Breath, a gift from The One to protect themselves and loved ones from danger. Liz and Jareth quickly went to their places at the end of the line. They decided that being the last to arrive would be to the shock of all and the benefit of their hidden family members below. It should buy them enough time to gain entrance without being seen or heard, with everyone gaping in shock and awe at the sudden appearance of the Goblin King and his future queen.

The plan went off without a hitch. As far as they knew, Ginny, Wolf, and Tony were safely within the castle by now. The men at the door barely had the strength to open it as they were fumbling and staring wildly at the elegant fae before them. Jareth was dressed in a white suit, much like the one he had worn in the ball dream with Sarah in style, but almost completely white. In fact, the only color he had on his person was black tips to his hair, black gloves, and black boots. Liz was dressed similarly. Her dress was extravagant. It was a long flowing white gown with a corseted top. It flowed into an A-line style and swooped beautifully across the floor. She wore a cape. It had a high collar that came up to her ears and flowed downward from the weight of the white feathers it was made of. It sparkled and drug behind her as she walked.

She curtseyed once they entered, and he gave a bow. All eyes were on them, even her mother's eyes were on her. She could sense her in the room, and gave a quick glance in her direction, letting Christine know that she knew she was there without being too conspicuous. Jareth and Liz decided to begin the dancing when the music started. They were laughing and smiling from the moment they had approached the doors and continued to revel in the awestruck faces of the people of the Nine Kingdoms.

They swirled around each other in a graceful fashion. Jareth was tempted to begin singing his own music, as he truly disliked the boring music that seemed to be played at balls no matter what realm they seemed to be in. It was a boring little waltz and the music was sickeningly sweet. Jareth began to smile wickedly at his lovely fiancée.

"What are you up to, your majesty?" She asked with an equally mischievous look on her face.

"Oh, nothing," he drawled out with pleasure on his mind, "Simply crashing the ball with a little something of my own," he chuckled.

She laughed in response, pressing her head to his shoulder as she did. She knew that that would attract far too much attention, and possibly prevent Ginny from even seeing their mother at all, but she was bored as well. She was also getting a bit nervous, wondering what was taking so long for them to get here.

Before either of them knew it, the three challenges had been completed, with Elizabeth holding her face from the lack of intelligence in the room and Jareth pinching the bridge of his nose with each test. Prince Wendell had to complete three tests: one of bravery, one of wisdom, and one of humility. The false prince was practically screaming the truth at them, in fact, he did tell the truth that he wasn't the prince and that he didn't want the job, but the foolish mob of royalty saw it as an act of humility, rather than the confession that it was.

Jareth and Elizabeth had no choice but to partake of the toast that was coming. They knew that no matter what poison it was, it wasn't lethal for them, but they had to hope that the queen didn't know that. They took a sip with the others toasting to King Wendell and pretended to faint on the floor. When they were sure they weren't seen, they disappeared out of the room and reappeared as owls. They watched in silence as Virginia was escorted by the huntsman with the magic crossbow toward their mother, who was actually willing to let her go free. Virginia wouldn't have it. She wanted Christine to remember her. Liz related to that more than Ginny could know.

Jareth, the moment that the queen began to assault Ginny, took flight through the castle to where the real Prince Wendell/ King Wendell was being kept. Wolf was being assaulted by the huntsman for preventing him from killing his creamy dreamy girl. Liz was perched on the guard rail of the balcony. She was teetering on the verge of flying over and attacking her mother to protect her sister and letting her do it on her own, but the moment that she saw Christine's hands throttle Ginny's throat, her mind was made up. She swooped down upon the unsuspecting evil queen and clawed at the back of her neck, making her dip her head just low enough for Ginny to grab the comb. Ginny didn't think, she just did. She scratched Christine in the neck and forced her to let go.

"You've drawn blood," the queen stammered out.

"No. No!" Ginny cried out. "Mommy!"

The scene seemed to move in slow motion to both Ginny and Liz. Virginia ran over to her mother and crumpled onto the floor next to her, while Elizabeth just stood looking on. Liz didn't even feel the long slender arms wrap around her that belonged to her fiancée. Wolf was unsure of what to do. He stood there holding Prince and staring between the women. Tony, who had apparently fallen behind somehow from Virginia, stood on the balcony with his hand covering his mouth in disbelief and shock.

When the people around them began to wake from their sleep, Wolf had made his way over to Ginny with Prince. Virginia scanned the ballroom in confusion.

"Wha-?" She began to ask the question but couldn't find the words.

"I switched the poison with a pinch of troll dust! I'm sorry I had to trick you," Wolf explained.

Virginia just rested her head back down on her mother's lifeless body and wept even more than she had before.

Through the entire ordeal, the exiting of all of the guests, the clean-up from the Christine and the ball, and the laying to rest of their mother, Elizabeth was deathly silent. Outside there seemed to be a slow brewing of a storm that seemed magical and unexplanatory. No clouds had rolled in, they simply appeared and directly above the castle. The air itself seemed to be permeated with sadness and tears.

After they had all been shown to their rooms, Elizabeth and Virginia were shown the final resting place of their mother and were allowed to spend as much time as they needed to say their goodbyes to her. Elizabeth allowed Ginny to go first and spend as much time as she needed, but it seemed that Ginny allowed her sister little time to do the same. Liz didn't mind. She knew that the pain Ginny felt had been suppressed for many years and she needed the time to purge her emotions. Liz had been old enough at her mother's abandoning her to have already dealt with it, so she waited patiently. Finally, Ginny left Christine's side and that gave Liz the moment she needed.

She couldn't say anything. She just looked at her mother with awe and wonder. She looked so peaceful. There was something behind her eyes that seemed to eat at and torment her when she was alive. She remembered that same look when she was shipped off to boarding school, but it was much more intense as she looked in her last hours. The magic within her must have driven her mad, and her death must have freed her from it. It truly was a pity that it had to end this way. She wished she had known of her gifts earlier in life. Maybe she would have been able to do something about all of this and it could have ended differently? She didn't know.

There was a sound behind her and she turned to see Ginny standing there. She held out her hand to her sister, but Ginny refused it. She had an angry and hurt look in her eyes, and Liz knew that she was in for one of Ginny's rants.

"This is all your fault! You could have done something. All this time you have been bragging about how much power you have and how you could have been helping us, but no! You just let her die! How could you?" Ginny's words spewed out. All of the hurt and grief she had been feeling inside just tore through the air and pierced the heart of her sister without a second thought.

"I'm sorry," Liz said, extremely too calm for anyone in their situation.

No one had seen both Wolf and Jareth follow Ginny down to the catacombs. They had seen the exchange take place, and both of them looked each other in the eyes when Elizabeth didn't even fight back.

"I can do many things, but I can't fight a poison that hits the bloodstream. I couldn't do it for myself, let alone someone else, no matter how much I love them," Liz continued.

"Oh, Yeah right! You know what? I never want to see you again. Just go away and leave me alone!" Ginny spat at her again.

The ground shook and the thunder clapped loudly. The lightning seemed to threaten the castle's parapets and the rain poured violently down. It slapped against the castle walls so hard that the tiny ventilation windows of the catacombs were pitter-pattering with the sound of it. Jareth rushed over to Elizabeth's side, but she put a hand up to stop him. She put on the face of control, but everyone there knew that the storm belied her.

Elizabeth turned to make for her room, but barely made it two steps before she fainted into Jareth's arms. He knew exactly what this was, and it wasn't good. A broken heart of a fae was not easy to fix. He took her to her room and settled her into her bed. Kissing her forehead, he turned to leave. He knew that the two women would have to make up if Virginia didn't want to lose her sister also.

"My sweet Virginia, that wasn't fair. She offered help, sure, but you and Tone refused. She's bound by law. She can't help unless you ask or wish for it," Wolf wanted to tell her more. He wanted to tell her that her sister's life depended on her healing the relationship, but he knew that she couldn't handle the death of her mother and the news of her sister's impending death all in the same week.

Virginia just slumped her head into her hands as she sank to her knees beside her mother's coffin. She let out a groan before she began to cry all over again. She was a mess, and she knew that she needed to apologize to Liz, but she couldn't face her right now. She'd wait until she woke up from her nap before she tried to talk to her. That would give them both time to cool down, she thought.

The two women slept through the night with their men pacing the foots of their beds. Jareth was sick with worry for both their kingdoms and his future bride, and Wolf was anxious about the wellbeing of his own Daughter of Azrael.

When Virginia woke up, she decided to go see her sister. After all, plenty of time had passed, and she should be in a forgiving mood, right?

She walked into the room to find Jareth sitting on the foot of the bed against one of the posts with one leg on the floor and the other bent at an angle with his foot on the bed. He had his arm draped over his bent knee with riding crop in hand, tapping it on the foot rested on the bed. He was looking absently toward the floor. Ginny could tell that something wasn't right.

"Is everything alright, Jareth? Um, Your Highness? Um. What do I call you?" Ginny asked.

"Jareth will suffice, for you, Virginia. But your sister isn't well at all. I'm afraid she's fallen into the sleep of the broken. Without the relationship between you being mended, she may never awaken, or worse, she may die. It may not be what you want to hear, but it is not a matter that time can heal." Jareth's words were almost accusing, if not harsh, but he knew that it was the only way to help his beloved bride to be.

"What have I done?" Virginia cried ashamedly.

Jareth got up and crossed the room over to her. He put one arm around her shoulders in a reassuring way while pointing to the bedside with the other. He led Virginia to a spot on the bed where she could be close to her sister.

"What do I do?" She asked, looking desperately up at Jareth.

"Speak to her. Heal what has been broken," Jareth replied coolly.

"Lizzy. Look, I'm sorry for what I said. I had no right to say that. I'm just really hurting, you know? I mean, I finally got Mom back, only to lose her all over again, and this time I'll never get a chance to see her again. I guess I just assumed that you didn't care. You never seemed to be affected by her leaving, you know? But you know something? I never could have gotten through it all if it weren't for you. You made me feel like I was worth the whole world when I felt worthless." She paused to wipe the tears from her eyes and gather her composure over again. "I just don't want to lose you. I want you to come back to me. I want to see you again. You're my sister. I love you. Please. Please come back to me," She begged Liz as her head fell. She laid across her sister's still form on Liz's chest sobbing bitterly for her. All she could think of was the guilt in her heart for the death of their mother and the pain she caused her sister. She kept repeating over and over as she wept that she was sorry for everything, and she fell asleep doing so.

Jareth waited for her breathing to slow before he picked Ginny up and headed for her room. In the hall, he was met with Wolf, where he exchanged both the sleeping woman into his arms and the tale of the attempt to cure her sister with him. They said nothing more. Another exchange was given, but his time, one of knowing looks, and they parted their own ways to their own women.

Jareth noticed that Liz's condition improved, but only slightly. This was more than grief from her sister's harsh words. This was the toil of hiding her emotions from people over many years. It was the hurt from their mother abandoning them for this world, the strain that abandonment put on the girls, being sent away to boarding school, having an ethereal nature and powers that everyone kept hidden from her, and feeling unloved by men and family. He looked at his beautiful Elizabeth lying on the bed. She was pale. Her skin looked like porcelain. Her blonde hair was neatly braided and laid down one shoulder to her side. She wore the same white dress from the ball nearly a week before. She hadn't awoken since that night. Her glimmer and shine seemed almost non-existent now.

Virginia slept for nearly two days. She didn't realize how exhausted she was. When she did finally wake, she had felt the overwhelming grief hit her again. She muttered to herself asking what she had done. Wolf tried to comfort her, but all she could think about was that her grief from losing her mother has nearly cost her her sister as well. She didn't know if she was improving, but she wasn't going to sit around and wait to find out. She got up and dressed and walked down the hall.

"How's she doing?" Ginny asked Jareth.

"Improved, but not much," Jareth replied, sounding as if he had gotten no rest since it all began. Truth be told, he hadn't.

"Oh," she said sadly.

Ginny walked over to her sister's side and took her by the hand. "You look like a little China doll," she said. "You're so pale and pretty. But we need you to wake up now. Jareth can't marry you if you sleep forever, and Dad and I miss you. Oh, Wolf says he misses you, too. He says you have to get up, so he can tell you a surprise secret, but you know Wolf, he won't say a word to me about it. Pft. I am so happy that you were able to see how much I love him and show me that I really could find love. So, now you have to wake up so that you can be a part of the magic you helped create with us." She paused for a moment to see if anything happened. "Please, Sis? Lizzy, Please. We all need you. We love you." With that, she kissed Liz's forehead, and got up to leave.

"Don't give up, keep trying," Jareth said as Virginia walked out the door.

She didn't reply, but she nodded her head in acknowledgement. The door closed, and Jareth was left staring at the back of it once again.

He was beside himself with worry, but he didn't dare let anyone see it. King Dorian was worried, too. The High King had visited more than once, and while he did, Jareth took that time to consult The One. If anyone could help her, He could. But the only response He gave was that Jareth already knew what he needed to do. The One promised to not allow Liz to die but Jareth had to touch her heart again. Jareth wasn't sure what that meant or why he would have to repeat the process of proving his affections. Didn't their run through the Labyrinth prove that? Wasn't that what it was for?

Jareth sighed in exasperation at the memories. He didn't know what else to do, but one thing he agreed with was that she did in fact look like a China doll. He began to sing to her.

" _I could escape this feeling, with my China Girl._

 _I feel a wreck without my, little China Girl._

 _I hear her heart beating, loud as thunder_

 _Saw the stars crashing_

 _I'm a mess without, my little China Girl_

 _Wake up in the morning where's my little China Girl_

 _I hear her heart's beating, loud as thunder_

 _Saw the stars crashing down_

 _I'm feeling tragic like I'm Marlon Brando_

 _When I look at my China Girl_

 _I could pretend that nothing really meant too much_

 _When I look at my China Girl"_

He didn't notice that as he sang to her, she began to stir. She slowly opened her eyes as the sound of his voice crashed through her ears. Suddenly her head was aching with all of the words of those who had visited her in her deadly sleep pounding into her thoughts and heart. She never felt more loved and full in all of her life. And the words that her very talented Jareth now sang made her heart clench all the more. She couldn't restrain the tears any longer and she slowly rose up out of the bed while his back was turned.

" _And when I get excited, my little China Girl_

 _She says, Oh Baby, just you shut your mouth,_

 _She says,"_ he continued singing until he was interrupted by the sound of another voice behind him.

" _Shhhhhhhhhhh_ " Liz finished the lyric.

Jareth immediately stopped singing and whirled around scooping her up in his arms and continued spinning until she begged him to stop through her laughter.

"Oh, Jare, I have the worst headache! Please don't spin me anymore," she said as she laid her head down on his shoulder. She was smiling a big broad smile that made him return the favor in kind.

"I thought I was going to lose you. We all did," he said softly.

"I know, I heard you. All of you. I need to eat, and then I need to find Gins. We need to talk," she said.

Jareth immediately made hot broth and fresh juices appear for her. She tried to pace herself. She may be a fae, but she still had limits. Over doing it could mean embarrassing moments to come later. It was best to stick to the humans' way of easing into things after such a fast.

After she ate, she spent some time with Jareth just enjoying his company, when a knock came at the door. It was Wolf. He entered the room to find the woman he already claimed as his future sister-in-law sitting on a chaise with her fiancée smiling and laughing.

"Elizabeth! Oh boy! Virginia's gonna be so glad you're finally awake! She's been worried sick, and it's not good for her in her condition!" Wolf piped up excitedly after carefully closing the door and checking to make sure no one was in earshot.

"In her condition? This wouldn't have to do with the secret you have for me that you refuse to tell her, would it?" She asked Wolf tentatively.

Jareth chuckled beside her into her ear. He must already know what it was, and seemingly to have mercy on his bewildered fiancée, he leaned into her ear.

"She's pregnant," he whispered.

But before Jareth could pull his mouth further away from Liz's hear, Wolf blurted out again, "She's got a little cub growing inside of her!"

Liz got up from the chaise lounge after the shock had worn off and sprung forward into Wolf's arms. He grabbed her up and spun her once while they both made excited noises. Liz wouldn't be unwelcoming to a child that didn't ask to be there, even if it was born out of wedlock, which reminded her…

Liz sent a punch flying into the side of Wolf's arm. "That's for not waiting for her to be your wife first!"

Jareth threw his head back and laughed heartily at that. That sly half-wolf deserved that. He should have been more of a gentleman with his beloved Virginia.

"Oooh! I couldn't help it! She so gorgeous! And I love he, and I _do_ want to marry her, and…" Wolf was interrupted by both Liz and Jareth.

"And if you truly love her," Liz began, "You would have waited for her and done what was right," Jareth finished.

What's done is done. But you _will_ marry her now, won't you?" Liz added.

"Of course!" Wolf almost sounded indignant, "But she may need help convincing!" he finished with a little bit of desperation lacing his voice.

"I'll talk to her when the time is right, Wolf," Liz stated with a little humor and a lot of encouragement.

"In the meantime, why not you and I take a walk?" Jareth put his arm around Wolf and the two of them strolled out of the room together and down the hall. They passed Ginny and motioned for her to go see Liz but didn't stop. They kept walking and talking until they were out of sight from everyone.

When Ginny opened the door, she found her sister standing by the window looking out sipping on a hot cup of tea. Liz offered Ginny tea, but Ginny refused it kindly and took a seat at the table. Liz didn't turn around. She wore a bright smile on her face, and she hoped that the widow didn't show her reflection.

"I'm so glad you're up. I was so worried about you! Are you still mad at me?" The sadness and nerves in Ginny's voice caused Liz's plan to crumble onto the ground like a mound of ash and dust. She wanted to fool Virginia into thinking that she was furious, but with the way that Gins sounded as if she were going to burst into a hot mess of tears, she just couldn't.

"Yes," she said sternly," I am angry that you walked all the way into this room, plopped down at my table, and still haven't given me a hug after all that carrying on you did about how much you love me," she jested with her sister.

Virginia was taken aback at the harsh tone at first, but when she caught on to what her sister had done, she couldn't hold back the tears any more. She burst into sobs as she threw herself onto her sister's shoulders. The two of them stood there holding onto one another for what seemed like eternity. They were finally united after all of these years.

Now you have to help me plan my wedding, and though I still can't tell you what secret Wolf has planned to tell you, I can say that I will be helping you plan some things out also." Liz said.

Virginia gave a quizzical stare to her sister as they walked arm in arm down the long corridor. The rest of their week was spent with awards ceremonies, planning Liz's wedding, and saying goodbyes. Virginia and Wolf had opted to go to back to the Aboveground to try and live a normal life, but Liz knew that that would be short lived.

Liz returned to her new home in the Underground where she began making the preparations for her wedding.


	6. Chapter 6

TKAM Chapter 6

Sarah sat at her vanity contemplating the events of the day after everyone had left. And truthfully, she had spent every night since then for five years in the same exact way. She had begun to realize that she had fallen in love with the King of the Goblins, but when he told her he had found someone else, jealousy and rage began to fill her heart. She remembered the encounter with him when he had told her like it was yesterday.

 _Jareth was sitting on the usual branch outside her room. She was sitting at her window seat just below the window. When she saw him there she had invited him in, by opening the window, she moved to the side and nodded her head towards the center of her room._

 _He had noticed how she had grown, and how she had grown more beautiful, but what he had to tell her wasn't affected by this fact._

 _He smiled at her in his usual way, but it didn't escape her notice that something was off. Still she tried to pursue his love and affection. She pressed herself against him and began to tell him about how she was wrong. She had fallen in love with him and she wanted to make things right._

"What an idiot!" Sarah yelled at no one in particular. She was seething with anger at the memory. She couldn't shake it. It was all she did anymore. It was why she was here, why she was watching Jareth prepare for a wedding that made her sick with both jealousy and the absolute sweetness of everything.

"Jareth, how could you have let that woman sink you so low?" She let her voice sink into condemnation and disgust. "You used to be a powerful king that didn't let anyone stand up to you!"

Jareth had some memories of his own.

 _Jareth had watched his beautiful Sarah grow from a teen to a woman. She was only sixteen when she ran the Labyrinth, and he'd seen her mature greatly in the process, but now this? He was shocked at the person she chose to be._

 _Sarah had begun to shun her friends. She absolutely, and flatly one might add, rejected Hoggle with an incivility that made even himself blush. It was the reason that he could now remember the dwarf's name more clearly. It brought him shame to see her in such a way._

 _He partially blamed himself for how she turned out. Perhaps if he had allowed her more time and hadn't taken the baby when she had called…. But then, there are rules. He had to follow the rules, even if he created them himself. Still, he thought, I could have found other ways to test her, I didn't have to show her my feelings right off the bat._

 _Now, his beautiful Sarah was a nightmare of a woman. She had not only grown vain, but she was both promiscuous and proud. To add insult to injury, Sarah had gone and written a movie script and sent it in to the Jim Henson Company as an anonymous author. They loved it and made it a movie. She was no longer the pure and innocent young woman of imagination and lightness that he wanted to be with. It didn't take long for his feelings for her to diminish entirely._

 _That's when he found Elizabeth. By then, his heart was completely full of disdain, and his original intent was to tease and test the young blonde girl. She was five years Sarah's junior. He didn't expect to find that she not only knew the story of Sarah and Jareth, but that she had complete disdain for the woman who hurt "her Jareth" so badly._

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Jareth smiled. He remembered the way that he had felt when he first saw Elizabeth. The love that she allowed to grow in her heart in secret was like a drug that rushed through his veins. At first, he thought that it was some kind of a spell, until he realized that she was the one that he was searching for.

Her purity and charm lured him in, but her honesty and faithfulness compelled him to stay. It was her determination and her desire that made his heart sing new songs for all of the joy that she had given him.

He was standing at a mirror marveling at his memories and his heart fluttering at the thought of seeing his beautiful bride standing at the end of the aisle waiting for him. He couldn't' wait for her to be his at last. He beamed with a light and a radiance that no one else seemed to understand. She had not only freed him from himself, but from the curse that was wrongly placed upon his life. How could he not love this woman? How could he not give his very life for her protection and care? Now, now he was going to be able to not only live by her side for all eternity, but to call her his queen!

"Ugh," Sarah said from her hiding place, "Must you make such a disgusting face? You are far above this woman, and now look at you! You're a lost little puppy who needs to be led back home. She has ruined you! Well, it doesn't matter, anyway. When I get through with you, you'll never even know she existed. Things will go back to the way they were, and I can show you how a real woman shows her love." She laughed to herself in a way that would make even the most hardened criminal's hair stand on end.

Sarah thought back again to all of the events that led her to this moment.

 _"Jareth! I'm so glad you're here! I wanted to tell you so much how I was wrong! I want to be with you. Please. If it's not too late, can I accept your offer now? I want to live with you in your castle and rule the goblins by your side. I love you, Jareth." Sarah pleaded._

 _"Sarah, I only came to tell you that I will not be visiting you any longer. I have found someone else for whom my attention will be granted. Please understand. You are not the young woman I once loved. Forgive me, but I see no other way," Jareth spoke with as much feeling as he could. It was in his nature to be harsh, usually, but this was a delicate situation and harsh words would escalate the situation far beyond what he desired to._

 _"'Not the woman you once loved'?" Sarah spat with indignation. "'someone else for whom your attention will be granted'?" her voice raised even more. "So, that's why you stopped visiting me! You were off galivanting with some stupid," she was now screaming and couldn't find the word due to her immense anger, "floosy!"_

 _"Elizabeth is_ not _a 'floosy' as you have so crassly put it, and I will not tolerate this kind of a tone from you! Goodbye, Sarah!"_

 _With that Jareth disappeared from sight never to be seen again. Sarah sank down to the ground and collapsed in her pain and sorrow._

 _"You will regret that, Jareth!" She sobbed into her carpet._

Sarah wiped the tear from her face. She didn't have time to sit and cry, she had a wedding to watch. She was searching for clues as to how to strike. There had to be some way that she could find a weakness and hurt that insufferable woman of light! She sank into another memory, this time, one that made her smile a wicked smile.

 _Her family had called her crazy. They had barged into her room and found her sobbing on the floor. When they asked her what was wrong, she didn't hold back. She told them everything from wishing Toby away to her pursuit of the man that she loved. She could still see the look of shock and horror on her parents' faces. They didn't believe her and thought that she was crazy._

 _The lack of her parents' belief in her sent her into a violent rage that ended with Sarah sedated and in a mental institution. She never received visits from her family. In fact, the only one to ever see her was Toby. He didn't think she was crazy, he had memories to prove that she wasn't, even though he was so young at the time. He had also been a witness, as she grew darker inside, to the mean and hateful conversations that she had begun to have with Hoggle. He had even seen the last argument that they had ever had and witnessed the dissolution of the friendship._

 _Toby knew that she hated their parents. He couldn't blame them for not understanding, but he also couldn't blame Sarah for being hurt. He would have been hurt, too if it had been him that was in there and not her, but if he tried to defend her, Sarah had stated more than once, then he would be in there right alongside of her._

 _He would bring her books to read as a sign of love and compassion, but even he began to diminish in his visits from her. He had brought her a book called "Ink Heart" once. Sarah knew that he couldn't stay innocent forever. She had been locked up for six years. She was growing more and more dark while planning her revenge on the King of the Goblins. It finally came in her sixth year, and on a day when Toby would be visiting._

 _Toby still needed to be dropped off by his parents in order to see Sarah, because he was only twelve years old. He had another book for Sarah, but it had been nearly three months since his last visit, and he wondered if Sarah had noticed and if she would be angry with him._

 _Sarah was awaiting her brother's arrival when she began to read aloud from one of the books that Toby had gotten her. Suddenly the lights began to flicker and go out entirely. The sound of wind began to fill the halls. She was reading from Oliver Twist. That's when she noticed that a little boy in ratty clothing appearing to be from the19th century was standing directly in front of her. She shot him a wicked grin and set to work writing her own story. When she was finished with her story, she began to read it out loud, never bothering to put the young boy back where he belongs._

 _Thunder struck as she read, "I, Sarah, am a silver tongue. I hereby write myself to be a powerful sorceress, even more powerful than Jareth the King of the Goblins. I have the power to travel through the dimensions and control elements. I am capable of genius disguises and powerful potions. I hereby also make a pact with the darkness and the power of the void. I will seek my vengeance on the Goblin King and his precious Elizabeth!"_

 _Lightning threatened the security of the building. A violent storm broke out. She flickered, as if she were a candle, and then disappeared._

 _Toby was still holding onto his beliefs in the magical realms, and when he saw the lights and the storm he began to run full force towards his sister's room. When he arrived and saw that she wasn't there, he dropped his book and ran for his parents. He had to get home and warn Jareth somehow._

 _Sarah smiled. She had arrived in the Underground again but made an effort to hide efficiently from Jareth. She was able to spy on him, seeing who it was he was infatuated with, and made her way from the Underground to the Kingdoms to begin her six-year plan of retribution._

 _Not only was her plan working out splendidly, but she was able to recruit the help of some bandits, convinced a fae woman, who was battered from what turned out to be a horrible loss in a duel, to give her all of her power and life force, and had successfully thwarted any attempt that Toby would have made to contact Jareth. All that part took, was threatening to kill their parents. After that, Toby quit trying to contact the fae altogether._

Now here she sat, in an old abandoned castle far on the outskirts of Jareth's kingdom. The powerful magic she had written and spoken into herself prevented Jareth from even sensing that something was amiss, let alone seeing it with his own eyes. She had cloaked herself, and her army, very well indeed.

She watched through mirrors and reflective surfaces as they crackled to life with images of Jareth and Elizabeth. The wedding was going according to plan, but not for long if Sarah had any say in it. To be honest, she wasn't even sure if she should interrupt it. She wanted to keep her identity secret for as long as possible before making her move. Her army was nearly completed. If she could remain patient for another year, complete, then she would have maximum impact upon all three of the realms.

It was the jealousy stirring inside her that made her want to attack. She had to still herself to remain patient. _No,_ she thought, _there is still more work to do. If I want to succeed and not just take vengeance, but the realms, then I have to continue growing in strength and my armies need more to their masses. It's time to plug the final pieces into the puzzle,_ she thought with mirth. Sarah knew that the elite guard that she needed to create the most destruction against the realms would take time. Fae didn't die that easily and when they did it would be noticeable.

Liz was staring into a mirror at herself. She smiled at the long and elegant flowing gown that adorned her body. She was proud of it. It was a dress that marked the rest of a new life with a man that she loved with all of her heart. This man had sacrificed so much to be with her, and all she could think about was making him happy. Only the offer of the crown of Azrael to Virginia was threatening to distract her from her joyous moment. She let out a deep sigh of satisfaction that caused both Kaylie and Virginia, who were her bridesmaids, to preen with delight.

"I am so happy for you," squealed Kaylie.

"I am happy for me, too," laughed Liz in return.

"Me, too. I am excited that you finally found someone who loves you for you," Ginny added.

"So, do you plan on having children right off, or are you going to wait?" Kaylie was curious and was waggling her eyebrows at Liz in a playful yet mischievous manner.

Liz giggled at the sight, "I don't know. That's the one thing that we haven't actually discussed. But, I think he wants a family. I just want to give him whatever he wants. He has been denied so much for so long, I think he deserves a family if he wants one. Don't you?"

"Totally agree," Kaylie said. "It makes sense."

"I don't really have a say in this conversation, I mean, pft, I'm already having a baby." Ginny sort of half laughed half snorted.

"Well," Liz began to tease, "If you had listened to me, you would be married _and_ pregnant right now instead of just the one."

"Geeze! I know, alright! I messed up. But, I love Wolf and I love this baby and we are getting married next month, so I think we're good," Sarah defended herself in a happy tone, despite the scolding her sister had given her. "Besides, I don't think that anyone could have stopped Wolf from marrying me anyway, not even me. He's so stubborn. He would have pouted and given me the puppy eyes, and then I would have caved. It always happens."

"I don't know what that's like, but I am sure that Jareth will want to convince me of something some day and I will experience some sort of persuasion tactics," Liz said while smiling at an image of Jareth deploying his most impish devices.

"Ah," Kaylie sighed, "If only I had a man to tease me." She laughed and then continued, "I think that Brody is sort of cute, but he seems a little standoffish. He doesn't really acknowledge me much."

"Trust me, Brody is into you. He's just afraid that you will be the one to break the curse I put on him," Liz explained.

"Ah," Kaylie released with understanding.

"He already loves Jareth and I, but he keeps telling himself that he's only serving because he's forced to so that he doesn't break the curse. He isn't even aware that he broke it about a month ago," Liz laughed. "I blessed him instead. I gave him the gift of faedom. One day he'll wake up wondering what's going on as he matures."

"Makes sense. And," Kaylie paused for thought, "that's funny. Too funny."

"Wait, you can make someone a fae?" Ginny was intrigued.

"Yea. I found out in a book I was reading one day that was on Jareth's desk in his study. I was waiting for my dress to be altered and found it. I have what's called the "Dreamer's Soul". Apparently whatever I imagine or dream I can recreate. This is limited, of course, but I can turn a human into a fae." Liz recalled the facts as if she was still reading from the pages of the book. "After the wedding, I plan on asking Dad if he wants his kingdom back. We want to reunite the kingdoms back into one, but it will have to be ruled by the monarchs and a regent, or dual monarchy. It's too large for us to take on ourselves, and I can't rule one kingdom while Jareth rules another."

"Do you think Dad will do it?" Ginny asked.

"I have no idea," Liz stated plainly.

"Well, it's time, ladies. Are you ready for the man of your dreams?" Kaylie interrupted.

"Born ready," Liz resounded triumphantly.

In the planning of the wedding, Jareth and Elizabeth decided to walk up the aisle together. Tony would hand Liz off to Jareth at the end of the aisle before they reached the altar, but it would not be as the Aboveground traditionally does. Liz and Jareth would show their regality and equality by approaching the altar arm in arm and with smiles on their faces. Afterward, there would be a reception dinner and some dancing, but then the castle was to be cleared for the bride and groom to celebrate their wedding night.

It was a beautiful and momentous occasion. There were hardly dry eyes. The air was light and breezy. It smelled of honeysuckles and magnolias. Colors were everywhere, except on the King and Queen of the Goblins. They both wore all white. Jareth wore a dream-like suit of white including his gloves and boots. His hair even had tips of white. The same could be said for Liz. Her dress was gorgeous, and the train flowed completely out of the room and out the castle doors. Hoggle bore her train for her. He considered it an honor. Her veil was covered in shimmering glitter and the ends of her hair that hung from her up do were dipped in white.

Every part of the wedding right down to the reception went off without any hang-ups. At dinner, Liz sat beside Jareth and had their family surrounding them. Everyone was laughing and having a merry time. The coronation of the new Goblin Queen was done near the end of the wedding by Jareth after they had exchanged vows and were proclaimed husband and wife.

"Ugh, it's a little too perfect. I gotta stop watching this. I'm going to be sick," Sarah said with absolute disgust for the scenes playing out before her. She made the mirrors return to their original state and began pacing her "throne room". She had to finish the work she had started, but there was nothing she could do with half of the Underground sitting at Jareth's table. She summoned her general and issued specific orders to her. It was going to be a long night.

"So, Liz, Jareth, what are your first orders of business as King and Queen?" Kaylie asked. She was seated next to Brody who answered for the monarchs.

"They're gonna reunite the kingdom into the land of Jarethanen and then put anotha monarch in Azrael to rule over the people while they rule the creatures an' goblins. Ain't that right, Princess?" Brody was beaming with pride. He never knew he could be so happy. He quite looked at Liz as a sister and couldn't bring himself to drop the once sarcastic name that he had given her.

Jareth nearly glared at Brody. If he didn't find that once annoying man to be such a good friend, avid protector, and precise treasurer (no one had expected that one, except for Liz), then he would have openly rebuked him for his interruption.

Liz put a loving hand on Jareth's arm and smiled at him. "Brody is right. We want to reunite the kingdom, but it is much too large for us to rule ourselves. It once took two sets of monarchs entirely to rule it. It was Jareth's parents that had the desire to reunite the kingdom."

"So, you weren't kidding back there in your room? You really want to try to reunite the kingdoms?" Kaylie was a little shocked. "Didn't that fail in the first place?"

"Yes," Jareth answered frankly, while turning to look to his new bride for an answer further.

Picking up on the hint, Liz spoke, "The rulers that separated the kingdoms in the first place were very vain. Each wanted to rule the kingdom for themselves and didn't want to work together, so they divided it up and were constantly at each other's throats in despise and disgust for one another."

"If my memory isn't too far gone, I think that we had attempted to reunite the kingdoms once before, but the people wouldn't have it. It would take some great convincing for them to reunite after so long. Some of them would still be alive and remember the conflicts," Tony added.

"So, who are you looking at ruling the other half of the kingdom once its reunited? And when are you planning on reuniting it?" Kaylie asked.

"I am looking for someone who doesn't want to rule. Someone who is humble and capable. For now, I need a regent to govern in my place. I will be appointing that person soon, if they should accept," she finished her statement while giving a pointed glance to her father.

"What, me? You can't seriously mean me? I am old! And fat! There's no way I can do that job, not to mention that I'm still helping King Wendell with his projects! No. No, I can't do it." Tony tried unsuccessfully to dissuade his daughter, but she just sat there staring and smiling at him as if she knew something he didn't. But before he could press her for questions, she spoke up again.

"Brody, a moment please?" Liz crooned.

"Yes, majesty," he said while getting up from his place at the table.

"Brody, there are two things that I want you to know," she had led them to a little balcony off to the side of the great dining hall. "The first is that you have been free from your curse for over a month, so you don't have to worry about pretending to hate me all the time," she said it with a little laugh in her voice.

"What? When? How?" Brody was confused and worried.

"Calm down. You're not mortal. I blessed you instead. It happened about a month ago. You defended me and served by my side relentlessly as I went up against many different types of foes. But I think that the day it actually broke was when you were willing to follow us both into the Labyrinth without question. You didn't know if we were going to live or die, but you loved us enough to go through it with us. I'd have to say that that really was quite a selfless act, Brody. You are now a fae, so don't be surprised if you go through the maturation process soon," she explained. Brody was too shocked to respond, so she continued, "The second thing is, be yourself with Kaylie. You two are definitely into each other, and you are more charming than you give yourself credit. Go for it. Be happy. You deserve it."

"Thank you, Princess, er, your majesty," Brody said. He waited in awkward silence for a moment, then grabbed her by the arm and pulled her in for a tight embrace. "No, really, I mean it. Thank you."

Liz didn't say anything else, she just nodded her head to him as he darted off to spend some alone time with the Okami Queen getting to know her a bit better. She had other important discussions to have at the moment, and that one was bound to be a bit on the humorous side.

As she returned to the table, Virginia and Wolf decided that it was time for bed and had returned to their chambers, Kaylie was off with Brody, and Jareth motioned that it was time to have a very special talk with her father.

"Shall we retire to my study?" Jareth asked looking at Tony.

"Sure, but I don't see how I can do what you're asking me. I mean, it's impossible," Tony protested even as he stood to leave the dining hall.

Kaylie and Brody walked quietly for most of way to their destination. They were headed to the gardens. It was a beautiful thing to behold since Liz had broken the curse, no longer stood the desolated, goblin ridden, and masticated corpses of plants that were once in its place. They made their way to a bench and sat down facing a fountain. Admiring its beauty for a few moments, they sat in silence.

It was obvious to both of them that the words that needed to be said wouldn't come. Kaylie knew that Brody had something that he wanted to tell her, but she didn't want to make him feel pressured or unsure. Instead, she decided to get to know him a little to ease the discomfort of exposing their feelings.

"So, where are you from? What's your story?" She asked.

"My story?" Brody was caught off guard and unprepared, but he was relieved that the distraction.

"Yeah, your story. Like, how did you become the servant of a king and queen, the king and queen of the goblins, no less."

"Well, it's kind of a long story, we may be here all night."

"That's alright," she encouraged, "I've got time. And if it gets too late, I'm sure there's someplace else we can go if you like."

Brody took a deep breath and exhaled. He steeled himself. He was determined that even if she ran away from him, he was going to tell her everything. He would start as his humble beginnings as a steward of a lord's manor in the kingdoms and end with his dedication to the Goblin Monarchs. This was going to take a while, he knew, but he was ready. Before he began, he was interrupted one more time by the silky-smooth feminine voice sitting next to him.

"If it helps, you can look forward to hearing my story when you're done. I promise, I'm not as glamorous as I seem," she chuckled slightly.

"Sure," he replied with a smile, "Although, I can't seem to ever see you in a light of less than perfection."

She turned a soft shade of pink at the words that came from his lips. She smiled at him and tucked some of her hair behind her ear in a shy manner. She leaned over and nudged him with her shoulder. Yes, it was going to be a long night, but they were going to enjoy just sitting together and talking for the entirety of it.


	7. Chapter 7

**TKAM Chapter 7**

 ***Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters or story line of Labyrinth, Tenth Kingdom, etc. ****

 ****Due to the process of writing a book, I will be making my chapters much shorter than usual. I have previously been doing about 12 to 18 Word pages (12 pt., TNR font, single spaced) of writing, but will be shortening it to about 5 pages. Thank you for all of your continued support! Please don't forget to review so I can make improvements! ****

 _(Several Months Aboveground Time Later…)_

The night was dark and ominous, even for the Aboveground. For someone who spent their life in the darkness, you would think that they would be used to the macabre, however, Dimitri was not. He was a vampire and a dream strider, but he didn't feast on the blood of humans and on the dreams of the innocent. Rather, he was the tool The One used to seek vengeance on the ones who had stolen innocense. He was the one who snuck through the night traveling by shadows in the Aboveground and in the Kingdoms, and by flight in the Underground to feed on the nightmares that evil would lay upon its innocent and unwilling victims. He drank from the manufactured and cloned blood of humans, but never from humans themselves.

Here he was now stalking an evil that he had been tracing for many years. It seemed to have attached itself to a young woman. He watched this woman closely and made note of the night that she made her escape from the mental institution. Something far more destructive than the individual bouts of evil and chaos would be taking place and soon, by the looks of things.

People had been going missing. Not all at once or in one location, but enough that the humans were now noticing it. At first, it was hard to pick up, as there were no bodies left and the number of homeless people were diminishing in the US. However, when those numbers were not adding to the employment rates, people began to question what had happened to all of those homeless people.

Next, there were people in third world countries that began to disappear. Same MO. No bodies left behind, only a growing number of disappearances spreading through each country. Now, the woman behind this was growing more emboldened. Well known faces such as wanted criminals, famous fighters from various martial arts backgrounds from various countries all disappeared.

Slowly but surely, the number of disappearances grew until it spread through the entire Aboveground world and into the kingdoms. From unknown and unwanted people to the more prominent. Overall, there were nearly 100,000 people who simply ceased to be without warning or explanation as to their whereabouts.

Dimitri was investigating this again tonight. Another fae had disappeared, but only when they had gone Above to visit a friend. It wasn't uncommon for fae to have Aboveground friends, but usually those friends weren't aware of the fae's true essence of being. This particular fae was friends with a teenage girl who witnessed some of the disappearance. Since he was first on the scene, he was pointed in the direction of the crime and where the voices trailed off into darkness.

Here he was, standing in an empty field with a feeling that he was going to come under attack at any moment. If Sarah was creating what he suspected that she was, he was going to have to run, and not fight. With the King and Queen of the Goblins still enduring the slow and agonizing process of reuniting the kingdoms into one, there could be no one to expend for his aid. He was on his own. His own forces would have to suffice, though how one kills a voided creature, even he did not know.

He took a deep breath and listened carefully. His backup was hiding in the trees disguised as bats and shadows.

"Come on out and show yourself," he shouted into the air with a deep baritone voice laced with an Australian accent.

Instantly a low maniacal laugh came from all around them. The wind began to blow. A Voided Creature stood in front of him. It was not like the usual ones. This one was much more powerful.

"How do you like my Void Elite?" Sarah cackled from behind him.

"She'll die as you will, mate," Dimitri countered with a smile as he whirled around to high kick her in the face, but she disappeared before he could land the blow. At that precise moment the Void Elite pounced on him knocking him to the ground, and his small team of backup took that as a signal to counter the attack.

The fight was gruesome. Every attack that the team of vampiric creatures threw at the voids never seemed to make its mark. It was as if the creatures were invulnerable to all kinds of attack. They fought until they were too weak to keep going. The morning sun was coming up, Dimitri and his warriors were running out of time. He was the only day-walker among them. If they wanted to live to see another moonrise, they had to retreat. This wasn't over, not by a long shot.

Dimitri stormed down the hall a blur of fury and hunger. His team had suffered substantial injuries, but had fortunately all come back alive, and before sunrise. Each time the voids struck, no matter what world it was in, he was left in a painful hunger from the nightmares and horror that proceeded from the devastation, but he had to find her. That ever elusive Sarah that left destruction and death in her wake. It wasn't so much the woman that was being used, but the darkness that used her. It was the ancient evil known as the Lost that powered her dark magics. The only way to stop her, was to stop it.

However, it wasn't his fight to fight the Lost alone. No, The One would do that, but Dimitri _was_ tasked with recreating the peace that was once stolen from the people that the Lost encountered. This seemed an ever-hopeless battle with its attachment to the silver tongue. He had no choice now. The only way to counter her, he thought while standing over his war table, was to get the council of the realms involved. Since that hasn't been done for nearly 1,000 Underground years, this proved to be a monumental task indeed.

The first place he needed to start was with the newly restored kingdom of Jerethanen. With their past ties to the young woman involved, they would carry more weight than anyone else. It seemed a visit was in order, but he would not go alone. He would need to bring protection for both himself and the still-vulnerable kingdom.

Xxxxxxx

Jareth sat in the window watching Liz sleep. Her golden curls flowing endlessly over the pillows made her look quite a lot like an angel. He was hopelessly in love with her. It didn't matter what life threw at them, she seemed to overcome anything, but something was amiss. In the last few weeks, she has been irritable and distant. Not wishing to make her feel uncomfortable or as though he didn't trust her, he let her be whenever she needed space. But whenever she slept, he was there, spending time with her however he could get it. He silently asked the One to reveal the source of her discomfort so that he could ease it in whatever way was possible. For the time being, however, she was at peace, and he would not disturb her.

She stirred and then finally opened her eyes, but before he could rise to exit their bedchamber, she spoke to him in a sweet yet groggy tone.

"Where are you going?"

"My love, I don't wish to disturb you. I'll leave you for now," he answered her.

Liz sat up in the bed with a look of confusion across her face. She didn't know how to answer him, and before she could, he was gone. She didn't want him to be gone, she wanted him to stay, but she didn't know how to tell him that she was going through culture shock without making him feel as though he wasn't enough for her.

Liz dressed herself and wandered through the halls of the castle tending to the minor details here and there. She desperately sought to do something more with her time. She needed to do something, or she would go insane. But for some reason, Jareth withheld part of her duties from her as Queen. She wasn't sure why, but she did know that it was within his rights to do so if he felt that she wasn't ready to lead. By now, she should have been answering the calls of children with wishes. Only Jareth could answer those questions now, and since the morning conversation, he hadn't been seen anywhere. She thought to herself that a stroll in the garden may cheer her up, and who knows, maybe Hoggle and her other friends were there.

Just as she had expected, Hoggle, Sir Didymus, and Ludo were all in the garden. She met up with them and the four sat down to tea and pleasant conversations. Hoggle and Brody were the only ones who really knew what was bothering Liz and were more than helpful in her overcoming it.

As they were preparing to make their way around to the front of the castle where the city lies, Brody came rushing around the corner out of breath.

"Yer majesty! There's a man nam'd Dimi'ri 'ere ta see ya! Be'a come quick"

"Alright, Brody, I'll be in Jareth's study."

With that the pair of fae vanished into thin air leaving the trio of unusual companions sitting at the table.

"She didn't even say goodbye" Hoggle exclaimed.

"Calm thyself, Sir Hoggle, her majesty had important business."

"Liz friend. Liz not Sarah."

"That's right, sir Ludo. Valiant thought indeed. We need not fear that we'll be abandoned a second time. My Lady is more noble than Sarah."

"Yeah? Yeah! You're right!"

"That's the spirit, Sir Hoggle!"

Liz walked into the study and sat at the window sill listening to the conversation that took place as she left them. A few tears made their way down her cheek. She felt terrible about just leaving, but she needed to be present and knew that if a ruler from another realm was here, it meant that something very dire or extremely important was about to happen.

Jareth and Dimitri walked into the study and paused for a moment. That was Liz's cue to rise and curtsey to the two rulers. She walked around Jareth's desk, to the side of the room, and took her seat in a chaise. Brody was standing there as well. From where she was sitting, she could still see Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus. She preferred to watch them while she listened to the ongoing conversation.

"Mate, you see, Sarah's runnin' amok out there and needs to be stopped. This was your mess. You need to have a part in fixin' it," Dimitri countered.

"I am well aware of the mistakes I have made, but I can assure you that if she is as powerful as you say, what makes you think I have any power to stop her?"

The two went back and forth in this manner for what seemed like hours. The sun began to set in the sky. The day was cooling down and turning cold. Finally, Dimitri made his true emotions known to the monarchs.

"Jareth, I'm surprised I even came to you. Everybody knows you only married Elizabeth because she is more powerful than you. You'd do anything to have your old power back!"

This outburst turned even Liz's head from the window. The tears were no longer hidden from her face. She was angry. It was an anger that even Jareth had yet to see. Simultaneously, Liz had never seen the fires of rage that were now burning behind Jareth's baby blues.

Liz calmly rose to her feet and smiled a gracious smile. The thunder began to crack, the sky turned dark and ominous. Rain fell once again at the beckoning of Elizabeth's anger and emotion. Lightening illuminated the room even more than the candles and cast a deadly glow about the place. Yet, the whole while, her face remained calm. In fact, no one would suspect that Elizabeth could have possibly been the cause of the storm, had Jareth not already seen the likes of it before.

"My good sir," Liz began politely, "My husband is more powerful than I. Yes, I have power, but I am afraid that without the proper training, I am as unpredictable as the storm that beats these castle walls. I could be lethal without meaning to, or not powerful enough against my enemy. And with trying to discover the location of Sarah's hideaway, run a kingdom that has recently been united, and take care of a new wife, I am afraid my Jareth is a busy monarch. So, If you'll excuse me, I will leave the defending of his honor to my loving husband, as he is more than capable to do so."

"Yeah. He's more than capable of running a kingdom, but the powerful woman in his bed, he refuses to let help him or train. I'm sorry milady, but he's not fit.."

A dangerously loud clap of thunder warned Dimitri to choose his next words with care.

"I'm sorry, my queen. It's just that he hasn't released you into your duties yet and you seem more than capable. I just don't understand the reasoning."

"We're done here," Jareth said curtly. "Show Dimitri to his room, Brody, then inform me where my wife has gone."

Liz curtseyed to Dimitri and left the room. She calmed the storm and began to allow herself to feel the emotions she had been keeping at bay. She needed to do something, so she headed directly to the training room. It was a vast open room much like a ballroom, only there were targets, dummies, and weapons lining the walls. She pulled a sword from the rack on the wall and began to practice her sword training in a fierce and angry manner.

Jareth found her in the training room and watched her for a moment before stepping inside. He pulled a sword from the wall and met her blows. He knew she was angry and needed to work out her emotions, but there was something deeper that needed to be addressed. Something that she wasn't telling him, and as usual, he would need to force it out of her.

Brody had arrived with Hoggle and the other two just a moment later and watched the spectacle take place. It was about to hit the fan. They all knew it. Liz would explode on Jareth and Jareth would say something that he would regret. Brody looked at the three friends and they looked back at him. Each of them wore a look of dread and knowing. As if they could read each other's thoughts, Brody shook his head in anticipation of what was to come. Hoggle hung his head and muttered an "Oh no", Sir Didymus just stood there mouth agape, and Ludo was silent as the grave.


	8. Chapter 8

p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"TKAM Chapter 8/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" /p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"emThe night of the wedding several months ago…/em/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" Brody and Kaylie wandered around the garden until they found a comfortable place on a bench near the fountain. Heavy sighs and anticipation passed between them in the silence of the night. The wedding was beautiful, and it reminded them that time is short, even for immortal beings. They could no longer wait to share their feelings. The time was now. /p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.5in;""My story?" Brody was caught off guard and unprepared by her request to regale him with his long and painful past, but he was relieved to have a distraction from the distance that seemed to be ever narrowing between them./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.5in;""Yeah, your story. Like, how did you become the servant of a king and queen, the king and queen of the goblins, no less." /p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.5in;""Well, it's kind of a long story, we may be 'ere all night."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-indent: 0.5in;""That's alright," she encouraged, "I've got time. And if it gets too late, I'm sure there's someplace else we can go if you like."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" Brody took a deep breath and exhaled. He didn't like having to face his past again, but he faced it once with Elizabeth and she was able to help him to become the man his late wife hoped he would be. Perhaps Kaylie would, too. He didn't want to waste time thinking about whether or not she would be accepting. At this point in his life, it was too late for that. No, he would plunge right in, because she either loved him or she didn't. She would either accept him with all of his baggage or not. Any woman who didn't love him through his past wasn't worth his time, or at least, that's what he knew Liz would say to him about it. /p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" emHe began at the beginning. It was his wedding day. Rebecca looked so beautiful in her white dress. It had the longest train he had ever seen. No one in the region could afford such an elaborate gown, but his patron, Lord Rupert, would not have no for an answer. He funded the entire wedding. He even took pride in decorating and planning the event for them. It was a beautiful day. It was the happiest day of his life. Until, about four years later, some bandits working for the Evil Queen ransacked their home. His beautiful Rebecca was murdered, and his house burned to the ground. Not being able to stand being told to leave the bandits be, he went out in search of them. His aim was to get vengeance, but eventually, he ran out of money and found himself a bandit and renegade. The very men he sought to kill took him in and taught him the trade. Without a voice of reason and compassion in his life, he had nothing to hold him back. He gave himself over to his vile and dark passions that grew from the pain within his soul. It was when he attempted to kill Elizabeth and Jareth that his life began to be illuminated with goodness again. He tried with all of his might to resist the kindness and compassion of Liz, but something about her was and is just too compelling. Something about her not only attracts people to her but calms even the most violent tempers. True also, was the fact that her kindness could also be so cold and calculating with a violent storm of its own brewing behind it. If one were to look in her eyes while she was angry, you could see fires of passion and fury within. It was this that brought him back to the light, this, and her…/em/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"em /em"Wow," Kaylie responded with tears staining her face with running eyeliner and mascara. "I had no idea your past was so…"/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" "Colorful?" Brody interrupted./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" "I guess. I'm so sorry you had to go through all that. I wish I could take your pain away."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" "You already 'ave, Love. Just seein' your beau'iful face makes my 'eart sing like it never 'as before."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" Kaylie giggled as she wiped more tears from her face. He was so handsome, and nothing like the rugged vagabond that he portrayed himself to be. But now it was her turn. It was time to share her dark and painful past. She wondered if he would be horrified or gracious./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" "Well," Brody cut off her train of thought. "I suppose it ain't all bad. I wouldda neva met you if I 'adn't."/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" "True," she said with a smile./p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" emShe didn't wait for another moment of silence or for the subject to change, she plunged right into her story. It began on a dark night about 200 years ago. She was out walking the perimeter of her father's estate where a beautiful pond lay near a tree line. It was her place of escape. She was prearranged to marry a duke from England who had given up his title to settle in the New World. He was very rich, and her family was very poor. So, the Duke and her father made an arrangement for the two to marry. She didn't like the idea, but no other man had made her an offer. Being an only child to their financially strained family meant that she had already become a burden on them. Marriage was the only way for everyone to come out on top. Sulking in her sorrows and predicament, she sat by the pond staring into it. The silvery moon glistened on the water and shone bright on her. It wasn't long before she heard the howling of nearby wolves and started for the house, but before she could take two steps yellow eyes were already watching her from the tree line. She didn't make it. She ran as hard as she could, but she didn't make it. She was down, pinned, and bleeding before she could even think to call for help. In her dying breath she looked up and saw that she was not attacked by any mere pack of wolves, but feral, savage, and lustful werewolves. Over and over again the beasts tore at her clothing, and ripped away her innocence until her spirit was crushed and her body useless. Then they took her life. They drained her of nearly every ounce of blood and left her to die by the pond. No one heard a thing. No one saw a thing. The next morning her father found her lifeless body, naked and destroyed. They performed the funeral, they mourned her loss. Her father sold the estate to the Duke and moved west to start a farm. He could no longer bear the sight of the old place with his daughter gone. It took about three days, but the mistake of the werewolves not taking the last of her blood had taken effect. Her body healed, her life was restored. Out of the grave she dug herself furiously. The first thing she did was track those murderous rapists down and tore them limb from limb. Then she picked up her father's scent and went to see him. Knowing that he would die from shock and horror, she kept her distance, but was satisfied with knowing that they were safe from harm and doing well. Over time, she became something of a weresswolf version of a black widow. She lured men in with her pheromones, then took their lives before they could cop a feel. That is, until Jareth found her. She tried to lure him in, but he was trying to lure her also. He could sense that there was something different about her, and when she made her move to attack, he countered. By the end of the night they were laughing and had become friends. He showed her where she could be free from her pain and where she could find a safe place. The very moment she stepped foot Underground and in the land of the Okami, all of the canine creatures from far and wide came to bow at her feet. They taught her about love, forgiveness, and healing. They showed her life could be beautiful even when someone steals the beauty away. They made her their queen. For the first time in all of the histories, a weresswolf had become more. No longer did she take on a hideous humanoid wolf form, but stood as a beautiful, sleek, elegant, and strong wolf. /em/p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;"em /emBrody just sat there staring at her. His mouth was nearly agape. He couldn't believe that this strong, sexy, and modest woman was ever as vicious, pained, and broken as he was. His attraction to her suddenly grew manifold. He couldn't find the words. After a few moments she began to stand and walk away. It appeared to him that she thought he disapproved of her. She wouldn't face him. He had to do something. He had to show her how beautiful that he thought she was. How extremely attractive, strong, and courageous she was! /p  
p class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: medium; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif;" He grabbed her by the arm just as she opened her mouth to speak and whirled her around to face him. He took her face in his hands and brought his mouth down to bear on hers with passion and love. His tears mingled with hers on her cheeks and she didn't resist him. Together they passed into a blissful state that neither of them had known existed. For the first time in forever, their worlds finally made sense!/p 


End file.
